


Savage Academy

by Zyi



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Enemies to Friends, Feels, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-02-01
Packaged: 2019-02-27 07:00:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 24,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13242984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zyi/pseuds/Zyi
Summary: After a con gone bad, Nick is left to rethink his choices in life, and his mistakes. He joins the ZPD academy and meets fellow cadet Jack Savage.





	1. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick has had it with his con days, deciding he wants more in life. He meets Jack savage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Story was posted prematurely when trying to figure out page dividers. So for those 5-10 people who got to see all the notes sorry. Kinda spoilers ^^
> 
> BTW how to do page dividers lol. Small ones in the center of page, not the long ones from side of side.

"Thirty, forty, fifty, aaaaand sixty." The fox said, counting the bills into the the smaller reynard paws.

"I still don't get why ya get two thirds the profit Nick." The fennec questioned, looking down at the much smaller stack of bills in his paws, then back up to the red fox with an accusing Leer.

"We've been over this Fin, like eight times already. But for nostalgia sake, let me count them off again. One: I keep track of what stores we visit and employees so we never run into the same mark twice." He held up his paw with a single digit stretched out, adding more as he went to along. "Two: I came up with the con. And three: All you do is look adorable and use your little paws for the molds. I do all the talking and selling. " He counted his own stack for the third time, it wasn't the best haul but one hundred twenty bucks was more than adequate for a day. "Besides, we need to switch to something new within a week. We're running out of marks, I'm thinking ice cream. Buy in bulk." He sighed, pocketing his own bills with a bit more flare than was necessary. He knew it wasn't much of a change, but not all cons are winners, and reliability trumped chance. 

"Next time we do something without the damn costumes, I get enough mammals calling me a kid without that damn thing. Also, pawpscicles to ice cream? Either you really like frozen treats or your running out of ideas." He growled out in a tone far to low to be anything appealing, before pivoting and jumping up into his van.

Nick only grinned, leaning forward and resting his elbow on the driver side window. " Awww, someone's grumpy, need a kiss from daddy?" He asked flirtatiously.  

"Touch me with those lips and I take my bat to your knees. Ciao" He spat, picking up his the pacifier to his costume and flicking it off of Nick's nose, hitting the gas and pulling away down the road.

Nick could only chuckle watching the short fused fox drive away in a huff; getting under Fin's fur was easy, but oh so amusing. Despite the constant bickering and fighting, the two foxes were quite close; spending nearly ten years as partners on the streets will do that to you. You don't last long without trustworthy friends. Survival required cooperation, even for the typically solitary foxes. Getting wasted together every couple nights didn't hurt either.

A deep rumble coming from his stomach told the fox it was time to eat. A quick glance to the sun told him that it was well past six, and in Sahara Square, that meant the temperature would be dropping soon. Most mammals who didn't frequent the district at the later hours didn't know that deserts dropped to freezing temptress at night. It's a mistake you make exactly once then never again. Sahara square wasn't well known for its warm food, but at this time during the day most places were selling at least something that wasn't cold or frozen, and Nick knew just the spot: Haydie's. A little dinner owned and run by a very lovely meerkat by the same name, which just so happened to sell the best cricket poppers this side of tundra town, and came with a spicy and tangy signature sauce that could leave leave even a fennec fox salivating enough to dehydrate them. 

Nick packed up his small cooler for the pawpsicles, putting the extra unused sticks as well as a few drinks he had leftover inside, his mind too occupied by the image of the aforementioned food sizzling on his plate to hear the nearby footsteps behind him until they were practically on top him.

"Sorry fellas, sold out for today. Come back tomorrow and I'll have a fresh stock." He said with practiced cordial tone. It was always better to give off a casual approachable vibe as it lessened concerns about his 'untrustworthy' species. In fact, everything about him was in this effort, from his groomed fur to his casual attire to the way he spoke, all to appear more approachable.

No response. Not good. Nick turned slowly to see two very large mammals standing in front of him, a grizzly bear as large as any polar bear he'd ever seen, and a bison with arms thicker and heavier than Nick's entire body, which meant one thing: enforcers. It wasn't difficult to discern the two mammals, unless they had just exited a bodybuilder competition and just so happened to have a fine taste in expensive tailored black suits, they were hired muscle and it was no coincidence they had paid the reynard a visit. He was obviously physically outclassed, he was under no delusion he could fight his way out of this. Running was also a no go, both a grizzly and a bison matched and exceed both his sprint and jogging speeds. That left him with little more than his words to work his way out of this potentially painful situation sans-bruises and broken bones. 

Nick clasped his paws together, looking to the top right of his vision, as if in thought. "Ya' know, I think I do have a few extras. Let me just get them from my truck right over here, one moment." Nick's suave and innocent guise was enough to pull a few bills out of most pockets, as well as talk him out of some less than ideal, potentially violent situations. It did little against hired goons with a mission, but he was left with little alternatives. 

He made it exactly one step before being halted by a firm grip on the back of his collar. With a simple and effortless flick of the wrist the grizzly flung the vulpine into a nearby ally, landing harshly on his back, knocking the air from his lungs and leaving him with a nasty lump on the back of his head. The worst thing about having the wind knocked out of you was how difficult it was to take a fresh breath, even if your body desperately begged it took a minute for your lungs to get over the shock. Nick didn't have time before he is swiftly yanked off of the cold stone by his neck with little more effort than a child picking up a plushie before being slammed against the ally way wall, doing little to help his oxygen deficiency.

"Wilde." The bison spoke harsly, leaving more than a few dollops of saliva on his muzzle. "Our boss is not happy with your last sale." 

"You sold him a large supply of redwood last month for building materials." The grizzly fallows. " See, there was heavy rain in little Rodentia a few days ago. The buildings used with your wood had massive water damage, they practically fell apart. We got experts out to figure out why brand new redwood lasted only a month when the boss is informed that not only was the wood not redwood, but flimsy proceed wood used in cheap sales...say...popsicle sticks? You cost him ten grand in damages, he wishes to know why your side of the story. "

It was apparent they were hear for more than just a stern warning. Nick was in a bind, he couldn't exactly run to the police, if he did he would be made a criminal pariah; lose all of his contacts and his favors would vanish if he were to rat out his issues the the fuzz. 

"Fellas, there was a simple miscommunication. See, the redwood I sold your boss, it was redwood. Red. Wood. With a space in the middle. Wood that is red. I never claimed anything more, your boss just... misinterpreted what I told him is all. I'm sure we can come up with some... more savory methods of payment, yes? Let's work out a deal. " Nick adjusted his tie, standing straight up as the two hired goons gave each other a look. 

The grizzly turned back to Nick before throwing a punch into the foxes gut, immediately causing him to vomit up the small portion of his lunch still in him onto the street, losing the feelings in his legs and collapsing onto the concrete, clutching his now brushed belly. The grizzly wasted no time,  picking him back up, slamming him against the brick wall. "We don't want your fucking money fox! Our boss sent us to teach your kind a lesson, thinking you can just get away with whatever you want because it's not technically illegal. Always trying to out fox hard working mammals with your scams and cons, never giving a shit about anyone but yourself. See, our boss can't go to the cops, that's where we come in." 

The bison steps forward, clenching his hoof before driving it into the foxes jaw, sending his head flailing off to by he side, blood gushing from his mouth, splattering the nearby wall, turning the auburn fur a far deeper formation of crimson. Before he can recover from the dizziness he's met with a second blow, then a third, and a forth. The two large mammals taking turns beating him, switching areas to not cause any long lasting damage. Nick knew they were holding back, trying not to damage him to much, maybe so it lasted longer. It would only take one good hit to KO a fox given their sizes and bulk. A particularly heavy blow is enough to tear his collar the bison was gripping from his shirt, allowing the semi-conscious fox to slump to the ground, before blacking out completely. 

Nick wasn't sure how long the beating had lasted, probably not long, but when he finally awoke he was sure he had more bruises than he remember, several on his legs, most likely from several kicks while he was out. His body ached, and it was difficult to open his eyes, both moderately swollen, and he was quite dizzy. It felt like he had gone a couple rounds with the Zootopia monorail with expected outcomes. Fumbling a paw into his pocket, he pulled his cell out, only to find it smashed. One of the hits he took most likely shattered it. No phone, he'd have to hoof it to Finnick; he wasn't a doctor, but he'd sewn up his fair share of gashes in his day and always had ice packs on paw. 

Finnick usual spot was three blocks away, normally a casual stroll; a little more difficult with more bruised tissue than not. It was also brutally slow, having to limp mostly on one leg, since it seemed the majority of kicks he'd endured while unconscious were focused on his right leg, leaving it mostly numb, like trying to walk on a sleeping limb, ready to give out at any moment. Except painful, much more painful. His vision was blurry, his body hurt, and worst still, his mind had time to wander. 

This wasn't the first con to go bad for the fox, far from it. No matter how good you were at the game, it was still a game. By definition a game was something you could lose. Nick was better than most, enough that he could make a healthy living off of his cons. He was smart; maximum profit for minimal risk, walk away with two hundred bucks a day. The higher you were on the ladder however, the further you fell. Take Weselton for example. Low hanging fruit, gets by selling bootleg movies and obviously fake watches. Not very profitable, but safe. Most who realize they were scammed don't even bother going back to confront the weasel, not worth the leg work. But no, Nick didn't want to skim by, he wanted comfort, that meant the occasional bad transaction. He hadn't always wanted to be a con mammal, but there aren't many options for a fox, not with the stereotypes. 

If the world's only gonna see a fox as shifty and untrustworthy, there's no point in trying to be anything else. Why bother to try when the world assumes your no good, lying, and untrustworthy? Rule one of being a fox: There is nothing more suspicious than an honest fox. Trying to be a good fox was simply asking for trouble. Try to be in sales: your scamming. (In Nick's case: True). Try to help mammals: your suspicious. Try to make a difference: laughable. Ten years. For ten years that had been his motto. He had stuck with it and it served him well, kept him safe. (Or as safe as on the streets gets.) 

Now, he was questioning his choices; this was his third beating of the year: it was March. A beating every month, but none as several as this one. Deep down Nick had always wanted to fight stereotypes. His mother and father had been honest working foxes, a seamstress and a tailor. They had raised him right, always pressuring him to go straight, especially after he started his cons. It was no coincidence that his partner was another fox, a fennec yes, but a fox. Nick knew many foxes, which was ironic since foxes are typically loners. Foxes had to stick together for help in Zootopia, nobody else was going to help them. Some mammals would rather kick a dieing fox than call for help, especially prey.

It had taken exactly one traumatizing event in his childhood to give up on his ideals. Pretty pathetic when he thought about it, he had wanted to be so much more.  Brave, honest, trustworthy, and loyal. The words a much younger Nick had aspired to be. The complete opposite of fox stereotypes. 

Nick couldn't help but laugh. "If only I had a chance to show the world what a fox could really be..."

Nick carried himself through the district, using a nearby window of an electronic store to balance himself, inadvertently smearing a trail of blood from a small cut from the bison hooves on the glass. 

"Mammal inclusion initiative. Allowing any mammal of any species the chance to work for the ZPD. No rejections based on hight, wight or species." a familiar voice echoed. 

Nick's ears perked up. "What...?" He asked himself, turning his head towards the window. 

It was the news, ZNN, blaring out of a flat-screen on display, talking about some new bill passed to fight discrimination. 

"If your just joining us. I'm Fabienne Growly. As of earlier today, mayor Lionheart has passed the Mamal inclusion Initiative. Previously, candidates for the ZPD could be rejected for not meeting stringent requirements, such as: weight, height, and species, preventing mammals of various species from joining law enforcement outside of Little Rodentia. As of today, with the M.I.I. This is no longer the case. " The snow leopard spoke. 

"That's right Fabienne, Zootopia is changing, but is it for the better?" The moose co-author continued. " Many debates have already began, and the results are mixed. Some think the change is positive, giving even the smaller mammals a chance to make a difference. Others are not convinced a smaller species will be able to protect and serve. How does a a sandcat or....a bunny protect and take down criminals? Absurd!...  They say. " He finished, having an unmistakable grin on his muzzle, clearly revealing what side of the debate he is on. 

"Ha.. A bunny cop. " Nick scoffed. The idea was absurd, but.. smaller mammals on the police force? A nice change for sure. But would a smaller mammal be able to complete the physical challenges of the ZPD? Nick was no expert on them, but he knew they were scaled for wolves and larger mammals. Surly not...but what about a fox?

The thought made his body tremble. A fox cop. Nobody would allow that. They would be booted out of the academy the moment they stepped foot in...but they couldn't. It was now illegal to reject based on species, even...a fox? Bravery, Integrity, Trust. The ZPD motto, printed right on their badges. He had seen the badges enough to know them by heart. Thinking about it, Nick was basically an expert on the law, he had to be to get away with his cons, always bending the law, but never breaking it. The only thing he had to worry about was the physical conditioning. He was twenty six, In the prime of his life. He wasn't in peek physical shape, but he was far from unhealthy, and had little fat, in fact he he was rather slim. Just bulk up a bit and... 

"Holy fuck." The fox put a paw to his face. "Am I actually thinking about this?" His body was physically shaking. The more he thought about it the better it sounded. Nick was a criminal. He knew how criminals thought because that's how he thought. He knew the inns and outs, the contacts, how the underground worked, practically everything the light didn't touch below smuggling and weaponry. Had being a criminal somehow inadvertently prepared him for taking down those same criminals? He also had no criminal record, he'd been careful. Brought in dozens of times, questioned plenty. The amount of times he was a 'person of interest' well... He practically held the record. "I could do it...no, I think I'd be good at it. " He mumbled to himself, looking back over at the window. "Mom... Your going to be so proud."

—————

Two weeks later.

"You can do this..." Nick told himself for the umpteenth time.

Nick had never been by this nervous, not even during his earlier hustling days. Simply staring at the academy sent a chill down his spine, the place was massive, like a large collage campus with its own miniature template controlled obstacles. It didn't help that he was drawing the attention of every eye within the immediate vicinity.  The mammal inclusion initiative did in fact live up to its promise, accepting the fox without a second thought.  It didn't help that he was the smallest mammal within eyeshot however. Many were giving him quite the glare, clearly not happy with his presence. He was also not out of earshot, the whispers were already starting. 

_Is that a fox?_

_A fox wants to be a cop?_

_Must be dirty._

_Bet he's a criminal._

_Get him the fuck out of here._

_Bet he doesn't last a week._

_He would give cops a bad name._

The insults only steeled his resolve. He had to do this, to make a difference. Taking a deep renewed breath, he strolled into the large doors, heading to the reception desk, spotting a beaver behind the desk. He waited patiently as she flipped through a stack of papers. Nick was grateful he was one of the last cadets to march in, just less bickering, laughing, and insults thrown his way. The beaver didn't even glance at him as she assign him to his bunk for the next six months. 

The academy hadn't been what he expected. He wasn't sure what he expected, but he certainly hadn't expected it to be this clean and pristine: no dust, no smudges, the place even smelled of disinfectant. The same couldn't be said for the company, several other cadets giving him dirty, disgusted, and shocked looks. The words sent his way were not any better, he could manage a few arcid words, he had his entire life to practice that, all he had to do was avoid a physical fight, being kicked out to being a ruffian would only serve to validate the stereotypes. He simply put on a his patented mask, comp, eternal with a sly smile and waved hello as he passed them. Arriving at his bunk, one could very aptly call it 'humble'. Two beds, one on each wall hanging just at shoulders length off the ground, so about three feet, covered by a sheet with a thread count he could count it on his fingers, and a white blanket. A single dresser at the far wall with several large drawers. And...that's it. Nick hadn't expected much, turns out he was right. The only thing that stood out was a small bag on the right bed, apparently his new roommate had already been and gone. He was running a bit later than most. 

Nick set his bag down, pulling out his new cadet uniform. Cop blue with large bold letters spelling out 'cadet' across the front. Apparently so no one mistakes them for actual officers, that would come later, if he could survive the six month experience. He would have prepared earlier, but recovering from his beating had left him unable to, and probably in worse condition than usual, he still had several sore spots from the worst of the hits. 

"Ten minutes Cadets!"  A commanding voice rang with enough presence to send a chill through him.  

Nick stripped down and threw on his new uniform. He had to admit, it was a good fit, slightly lose, probably accounting for the muscle he'd build over the next six months. Nick knew that he already had an ego, if he survived this to put on some muscle he would have to fight the vixens off with a stick. Noticing he was the last one in the bunks, Nick walked out, spotting everyone huddle out into the yard, quickly joining them. It wasn't difficult to spot their instructor. A large female polar bear with a frighteningly serious expression painting her face.  

"LINE UP CADETS!" The polar bear shouted, placing both of her massive paws behind her back, watching each cadet line up, eyeing them over. "I am Major Friedkin, I will be your drill instructor. I am here to whip you cadets into shape. You can address me as Major or Sir." She paused while walking up and down the line, eyeing each cadet individually, each seemed to shift uncomfortably under her gaze, except Nick. He bore the leer stoically, not moving, not flinching. She seemed to notice, hanging on him a few moments longer than the rest.  "Bottom line, you do not stop unless you cannot move. If you can get up, you continue. I will be pushing you past what you THOUGHT were your limits. Your bodies will hurt, they will scream at you to stop, you do not listen, you keep going. Is that understood cadets? "

" Yes Major! " The cadets shouted. 

"Thanks to the Mammal inclusion initiative we have several smaller than normal cadets. So there is no confusion, you will be doing all of the same training as any other cadet, you do not get an easy ride due to your size. If you cannot manage that, quit. I am not here to hold your paw.  Now that that's out of the way, for your first day I will be assessing your current fitness levels to put you on track. We will start you off five laps around the academy, that's ten miles. You have two hours." She stopped, turning to all of the cadets staring at her." Well what are you waiting for?! Go! " 

Nick began to jog while having an internal crisis _." Ten miles? I'm not sure I've run that far in my life! This is the starting point? OK, it's just running, you can run, no problem. I'm sure ten miles isn't as hard as  it sounds, yeah, it'll be easy."_

Ten minutes in and Nick's legs began to hurt. Twenty minutes in and they began to burn. Thirty minutes in and he was questioning his life decisions. He could tell by the lack of any nearby cadets that he was the slowest, everyone else had passed him early on, including the elephant in his class., he had been so deep in thought he hadn't noticed being left behind, yet he doubted he was out in front.  A sudden tree root caught his paw, sending him muzzle first into the dirt. He was sore, so very sore. _"Maybe this won't work out after all. I wonder what mom would think?_ " A sharp pain pierced his heart at the thought of disappointing his mother. She didn't even know he was here, yet failing her so easily was unthinkable. " _Can't give up so easily. Not like this. Just four laps to go, just one paw in front of the other."_

Nick hadn't finished on time, stepping over the finish line ten minutes late. But he had finished, soaked in sweat and panting up a storm. Mammals did not pant much these days, having developed sweat glands that were more effective at cooling down the body. It took a true physical exhaustion or heat to cause a mammal to pant, not that he cared right now.

"Dieing... Gonna die. I think I'm dead." The fox groaned out to nobody but himself, placing his paws on his knees in order to prevent himself from collapsing,  yet it earned a laugh from other nearby cadets who had apparently not only finished their runs, but also finished with lunch. Given they had a half hour lunch break that meant he had less than twenty minutes to eat and shower before afternoon courses. Thankfully the first week was mainly conditioning and endurance. 

"What's the matter fox, tired, ready to quit?" A mocking voice spoke from close by.

Nick looked up, blinking a few times to remove the sweat from his eyes to see a large horn less ram staring down at him, surrounded by a moose and a boar.   _"Great.. A herd"_ Nick silently swore. Not many mammals liked foxes, other predators disliked them, prey hated them. But it was herd mammals that truly despised foxes to their core. They hated foxes like it was a personal vendetta that had gone on for generations. The way this ram stared at him screamed 'You killed my father, prepare to die.' "Sorry, was up late last night with your mom, she likes me to tell her what a ba-a-a-a-ad girl she is." Nick put on his tried and true hustler grin on. It wasn't his best joke, but he was half dead at this point. 

The sheep was fuming, gritting his teeth, apparently the insult hit its mark. "The fuck did you just say pelt? I'm gonna bust your fuckin—" He paused, his eyes trailing up over the fox. "Next time fox, next time." He spat, turning and walking off for the cafeteria. 

Nick only had to look behind him to spot what had caused the speciest sheep to turn tail and run. Major Friedkin was standing right behind him, causing the hackles on his neck to stand on end. _" How the hell didn't I hear her coming? Losing your edge Nick. First a grizzly and a bison, now a polar bear."_

 _The Major raised her paws in a defensive fashion in front of her._ "Settle down their foxy. I just came over to make sure things didn't get violent with Ben there." She pointed over to the retreating Ram. " I want you to know that while I may be a hard ass, I don't allow speciest behavior on my campus. If you think your being attacked due to your species, you come to me. I've been around long enough to not judge a book by its cover. "

Nick was taken aback, he hadn't expected to be treated like.. well an actual mammal here. Not with the types of police he'd known. Cocky, headstrong, and severely lacking in empathy for those of his particular species. Nick stood up straight, looking the Major over with a newfound respect. "Thank you Major. But I'm going to decline. I'm not going to get anywhere as a police officer if I can't deal with a few biased sheep. I've been dealing with these comments my entire life, nine more months won't hurt."

This earned him a friendly grunt from the Major." Foxy has stones. I like that. After your run I was sure you were going to be the first one out of here but, maybe you'll prove me wrong. "

" I sure hope so. But if your going to keep calling me 'foxy' maybe I should take you out to dinner." He smirked, motioning to the cafeteria with a paw.

The bear raised her eyebrow. " I'm way out of your league, now get moving. " She flicked her wrist in the same direction before heading off. 

Taking a deep breath, he allowed his posture to slump before giving his lower back a rub, heading into the the building. The food was as unappealing as he expected. A helping of mashed potatoes so grainy he could spot the grains, a serving of what he assumed was supposed to be bugloaf, yet looked more like fried mud, and a pile of..Nick wasn't quite sure what. It was a yellow mass, and smelled like peaches, but looked like no peaches he'd ever seen, but jiggle like jello when poked with his sport. Taking his food he sat down at an empty table, not wanting to start a fight with whoever sat next to him. It didn't take long to notice that fingers, nose and other, ruder gestures being thrown his way.

Nick took the opportunity to scope out the room since he hadn't had a chance to before. The room was packed, he estimated fifty trainees overall. A few he had seen on the run, but not for long considering his pace. 

The first one to notice was an elephant for self evident reasons, sitting in the back next to a rhino and a hippo. Made sense, it was easier to associate with mammals your own size. Next table down sat the family ram Nick had been unfortunate enough to run into, Ben. Or was it fortunate to know your enemies early? He sat adjacent to a very unfriendly boar that Nick guessed sharpened his tusks and mangy fur, and a brown splotched moose with trimmed antlers, the same two with Ben earlier, probably as species as the ram if he had to guess. 

Continuing down the room was a table consisting more of the female gender. A slim cheetah that had her paw to her mouth, trying not to laugh to loud, not much stood out at a distance except the radiant smile that seemed to never leaver her muzzle. Next was a tigress, slimmer than an average lioness, but still bulky enough to distinguish herself from most females. She didn't seem to be much of a talker compared to the others, a quiet girl. Next was a painted dog, but due to her position Nick was not able to see anything but her back, it was only her rather...impressive hips that gave away her gender. The last female at the table seemed to be an otter with small circular glasses. An otter wasn't exactly the best pick for a police officer due to their natural aquatic nature, but Nick had been the last one to finish the run, so he had no room to talk. 

A small howl of laughter caught the foxes ears, looking to the opposite side of the room. Two wolves, one white and one grey seemed to be having a the time of their lives. Nick continued to look from the corner of his eyes curiously, until the grey wolf pointed right in Nick's direction while laughing up a storm. Wolves and foxes had a rocky relationship, their social structures were just to different. Wolves lived by the pack mentality, while foxes were loners. Some wolves still held a distrust of foxes due to that sunglasses difference.

What did catch his eye was who they were talking too, a bunny, grey with several black stripes lining his cheeks that Nick assumed were dyed on. "Holy crap the news was right." A bunny cop. The rabbit seemed enthralled by the wolves antics, laughing every time they pointed in the tods direction. Again, unsurprising; Rabbits and foxes were natural enemies thousands of years ago, and not many rabbits were keen on letting that go. Nick had met a few bunnies before, while not common in Zootopia, it was a tourist spot for many places. None of his interactions with the lapine species had been good; without fail every single one had some sort of anti fox paraphernalia on paw: fox teaser, fox away, fox horn, the usual items, all wrapped in a bright pink label that just screamed 'bigot' in nice bold letters.

Of course, he hadn't expected the bunny to stand up and make a b-line straight for him.  A glance down at the wolves faces were all of the warning signs he needed, grinning like idiots. Nick invented that smug grin, using it dozens of times just before telling someone off. It had 'hidden motive' written all over it. The rabbit had a tremulous expression painting his face. If Nick knew how to read a situation: he did, the wolves had set up the bunny to come make some rude comment, and the rabbit was nervous about approaching a fox. 

Nick stood, not bothering to wait for a response, he had ten minutes before afternoon courses and wasn't about to waste it on the rabbit or anyone else in the hall, he needed a shower. Nick raised his paw to stop the rabbit before he began. "I don't know what your selling, but I ain't buying. I've got ten minutes and I'm not wasting them on a rabbit." 

Nick didn't even turn to see the rabbits soul, turning and practically limping to the showers, overwhelmingly grateful it was empty. The hot water was heavenly, washing the now dried sweat matted into his fur away. It was a shame he didn't have time to enjoy it. Five minutes later he threw on his second set of his cadet clothes before reporting out into the yard once again, and once again he was last. 

"Now that cadet Wilde has graced us with his presence, we can begin. I know you are all still tired from the morning run. The good news is that you won't be running more laps." The Major began, receiving an audible sigh of relief from half of the group. "Understand, Zootopia has twelve unique ecosystems, each controlled by a sealed biome to regulate its environment. Harsh deserts, freezing tundra, Rocky cliffs, rainforest, you get the idea. 

 "As an officer you will be required to manage various and unusual situations. You must be prepared foe every situation, even if it seems unlikely. Bottom line, you never know what to expect. So for today you will be running through a series of obstacles to test you. Use this to assess you own strengths and weaknesses, find out what you need to work on. Because if you can't overcome something this? Guess what? YOU'LL BE DEAD! " She finished. 

Ursala Friedkin had been an instructor for ten years, managing and developing her students abilities had become second nature to her. This year however, with the M.I.I. being introduced, it was a new experience. Handling mammals smaller than four feet had never been an issue, and as such she had no idea how to develop their smaller bodies. Thankfully only three cadets assigned to her were of small stature. The tallest of the bunch, a red fox she already had the pleasure of meeting. He was smart, had that glint of wit and intelligence to him, but was lacking dramatically in physical prowess, especially endurance. The way he held himself gave the bear an inkling that he was also somewhat injured. 

The second, an otter by the name Lisa Otterton, seemed to be completely out of her depth. She was physically fit, but meek and shy, not a good traits for an officer. She'd have to build confidence if she were to pass, or else freeze up in the line of duty. The third, a rabbit/hare mix by the name Jack Savage. Determined, focused, with a look of purpose to him, yet physically lacking in all attributes. He also seemed to be heavily displeased or agitated, and with the death glare he was sending the fox, she had some idea as to why. 

"As you can see, we have erected, " Several giggles were heard from the class, forcing the bear to roll her eyes. "several simulations here in the yard. These will not be graded for the first week, but you will be marked for Improvement, so try like your life depends on it, because in the future it very well might be. First up, Scorching Sandstorm Simulation." She pointed over to a large strip of sand with three very large fans at the end, probably fifty feet in length." In Sahara Square sandstorms happen every day, if you cannot fight the wind, the suspect could escape, or worse, you could be tossed into danger. Line up cadets! "

Nick took his place in front of the fans, digging his feet into the warm sands. He had an advantage here, with his slim fox build he was very aerodynamic. He was surprised to see the bunny from earlier standing next to him, but a quick glance around made the despising obvious. Most of the other cadets were large, with only a pawful being his own size. For a bunny, even a modernly tall one such as this, being stepped on was a real threat. The worry on his face was evident. "Oh don't worry fluff, it's just a little warm breeze." 

The rabbit stared daggers at the fox. "The names Savage. Jack Savage." He gritted his teeth, annoyed by the fact he had to stand near the fox.  

"Whatever you say stripes." Nick tilted his head from side to side, drawing several satisfying cracks and pops, before rolling his shoulders to loosen them up. Everything felt unresponsive after the run, but the shower had done wonders. 

The whirl of the fans was the signal to move. Nick dug his claws deep into the sand, using his large paws for grip, pushing himself forward with his hind paws. Keeping his snout low to the sand and his eyes mostly lidded, he felt only moderate wind resistance, and the warmth from the heat lamps actually felt great on his fur. He had been half way when curiosity got the better of him and he turned to check the bunny— Jack's progress. He had managed to move ten feet at most; his grip was failing him, his ears flailing wildly behind his head. It reminded Nick of a plastic bag dangling out of the window of a car, before his grip finally gave way and he flew back a good five feet before rolling to a stop on his back. 

Nick pushed forward, feeling slightly reinvigorated watching the rabbit fail. To his surprise, several others were having issues with the wind, including the two wolves, an otter and moose. Wolves were not as aerodynamic as a fox, otters were built for more aquatic avenues, and nick guessed most ungulates would have a difficult on the course terrain. Reaching the end of the course he was fairly proud of himself, having beaten most of the class, including the Ram and his herd. 

Next was the ice wall, something Nick was now dreading. Foxes were not good climbers, not with their claws, they were for digging in dirt and snow, not solid ice. They were not sharp enough to grip with friction, and his pads wouldn't help on a sheer vertical climb. Jack was once again next to him, obviously peeved at the foxes success and his own failure. As soon as the whistle blew Nick sprinted, if he was going to clear the wall he had to get a firm grip, and didn't need others in his way. Nick leaped as high as he could, trying to remove any unnecessary climbing from the obstacle. He was quite proud of his jump hight, and luckily he stuck to the wall, if only for a moment, his grip and claws slipping slowly, sending him screeching down the wall only to see Jack grinning like mad as he soon fell off completely and into the freezing waters. It was nightmareishly cold.  Nick burst from the waters, clutching the ground, shaking like mad.

"Your Dead foxy!" The deep and mocking voice of the instructor boomed.

"Not so smug now huh 'foxy'?" Jack asked from above, near the top of the wall, before throwing himself up and over out of view. 

Nick was shocked how the rabbit managed to climb the wall so effortlessly. He would have guessed it be more difficult with his smaller size, getting no traction, but he made it look like casual hop. 

The rest of the day went buy in a blur of pain, mocking insults throw back and forth to the rabbit. It seemed like every exercise Nick was good at, Jack wasn't, and vice versa. The number of 'Your dead's' shouted his way was nearing double digits before the first day was finally at an end. Thankfully not every day would be like this, not when the study portion began. After a quick dinner and an all to soothing shower, Nick was ready to be drop where he stood, limping his exhausted body to his bunk, plopping himself frown face first onto his bed. The cold and lumpy bed was heaven to his worn body. A small amount of rustling from the other bed told him his bunk mate was inn. 

"Look what the fox dragged in." A families and irritating voice spoke. 

Nick groaned deeply, turning his head to the side to see the stripped bunny eyeing him, his chin resting on his paw while holding a book in the other.

_Jack fucking Savage._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's chapter one. Hope my second work is an improvement. I could probably use a proof reader and editor. If you see any mistakes just leave a comment and I'll fix them. Tell me what you guys think.


	2. Vertical Incline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick and Jack progress in their training in, even if only a bit. We get to see Jack's perspective on some things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is in effort to propel the story and development along. I also tried to put some excitement into the story, which I realized was utterly lacking after I posted chapter 1. Future chapters will focus a bit more on character development and less on the physical training.
> 
> Thoughts and comments appreciated. Give tips and advice :3. 
> 
> Savage/Wilde 4 lyfe!

SPLASH! 

Nick's eyes shot open, suddenly his entire body felt like he spent the night in the arctic. He struggled to move, to get out of the now soaked bed,  tumbling out onto the floor, eyes racing around to get his bearings. Nick looked up to see the major surrounded by several other cadets staring down at him. His eyes were drawn down to the dripping bucket in the Majors paws. 

"Morning Cadet, sleep well?" The Major asked with an all to satisfied look etched on her face. "Morning run starts in five, you best be dressed and ready if you don't want to start the run late, we _will_ start without you." 

Nick was left sitting on the floor, struggling with the freezing water soaking his fur and uniform. Thick fur kept you warm in winter, but it also served as a sponge when you were wet, keeping the cold unwanted moisture against your bare skin.  He'd have to make sure not to sleep in to avoid another icy alarm clock. He wished his roommate had woken him up, only to remember that it was that damn rabbit Jack Savage. He'd get no favors from him. 

Nick soon strode out into the yard, seeing the class in the middle of their morning stretches. As he stepped into line he couldn't help but notice Jack had a satisfied smile on his face. "To much to ask to be woken up roomie?" He took his spot next to the rabbit, throwing a leg behind his back, gripping it with his paw to stretch it, before doing the same with the other. 

It earned a single laugh from the bunny. "And miss the ice bucket? I had heard the Major wakes her students up like that if they sleept in and I wanted to see it. Plus, not my fault you slept in. I went to sleep two hours after you and still got up on time. Don't worry, I hear being the first to get iced is good luck."

Nick froze at thoughts of being 'iced' by the tundra town mob boss Mr. Big. He'd take the bucket of ice water over a frozen death every day of the week, and thankfully as long as he avoided tundra town he'd never have to run into the shrew, and perhaps in police blues the shrew would be more hesitant to ice him over a decade old grudge. 

The run soon started, and Nick was quickly feeling the after effects of yesterday's training. His legs felt as if he had cinder blocks tied to them, his wrists were bricks, and the rest of his body was sluggish at best. Thankfully he wasn't the only one feeling the effects of the first day, many mammals were lagging behind enough for Nick to keep up. At their pace none of them would reach the desired time, making him wonder if there was any punishment for being slow when they were graded for this after the first week. After two laps Nick's muscles seemed to accept that he wouldn't stop, the pain dulling down enough to be bearable. With all of that bravado, even Jack was in view, only just ahead of Nick, both behind the elephant and several other exhausted and sore mammals. 

"Maybe you should have taken that extra sleep Jack. You seem tired."  Nick said in effort to distract himself,  making an effort to run up along side of the bunny

Jack's muzzle scrunched up at the sight of the fox. He felt fine all morning, no soreness, energy to spare, he got cocky. Then he started his run, and the illusion had shattered. His legs were on fire,  aching and burning just after the first lap. He had pushed himself during the first day to prove himself, and it had come back with a vengeance, it's goal seemingly to embarrass him in front of the fox.  "Bet I still do better than you Red."  Jack challenged, taking a few longer lunges to advance a few feet in front of the fox, banking completely on the evidence that he was still in better shape than the fox. 

"Oh, Red? I like it. Is it because I'm passionate, or my red hot determination? Or perhaps it's because—"   

"Your fur smart one. It's because your fur is red." 

"Ah, I had guessed you cleverer than that." 

"Because 'stripes' is clever?" Jack raised an eyebrow at the fox, looking back at him. 

Nick wanted to make a retort, but nothing clever came to mind, thus conceding the point. "Touchè. Still, gonna miss you calling me 'Foxy' that did wonders for my ego."

"The last thing you need is a bigger ego." he grumbled softly to himself, picking his pace up again. 

The remaining three laps were exhausting for both of them, in the end barely making it across the finish line twenty minutes late, both ready to keel over.  It didn't help that the two of them made it an effort to outpace the other. In the end Nick simply didn't have the stamina, even with his wider gait. This time however, there were a dozen mammals out of breath with two actually laying collapsed on the ground. It made Nick feel a little better after yesterday, no longer the odd one out.

The new levels of exhaustion made for a much quieter lunch break, with only a few of the cadets paying any attention to anything other than their food. Only the boar, the lioness, the cheetah, and oddly the otter were unfazed by the run. Nick scarfed down his food as fast as possible, only faintly tasting it before he limped to the showers. The showers had to be his favorite part of the day. Hot, soothing and peaceful. For those fleeting minutes his body didn't ache or hurt to move. And he got two a day. Unfortunately due to being slow on the run, he only had another five minute shower. It gave him one more reason to train to finish his running on time, just to spend longer under this fountain of youth.   

It was physically and mentally traumatizing to separate himself from the shower, but he was too frightened to be hit by a bucket of ice water after the momentary bliss and destroy how warm and fuzzy he felt. 

The Major was waiting outside, but this time Nick wasn't any later than several other cadets. "I know many of you are tired, sore, ready to quit or fall over from yesterday. There is a reason I push new cadets so hard during the first week. It's to test you, to see which of you will give up and go home when things get difficult. You must be able to keep going, your bodies will adjust to the strain if you keep at it. It's for this reason that most dropouts happen within the first month. If you can push yourself until then you have a good chance of graduating. Now onto the afternoon courses." 

The jungle course was up first for today, something Nick excelled at. While he didn't have the strongest arms, they were strong enough to hold his light frame up for an extended amount of time, even pull himself up a few times. He was also under no delusions about his physique, his arms were the least fit part of his body. The most difficult thing in conning was lifting the occasional box or hoisting a jumbo pop up a ladder, leaving little reason to keep them fit, it had always been better to spend his time practicing his speech, thinking of new cons and making contacts. Or drinking, lots of drinking. 

As soon as the whistle sounded Nick dashed to the vines, leaping up and grabbing the highest he could reach. They were slick but his large paws and pads kept his grip firm. Swinging from vine to vine, he soon climbed off to the other side with relative ease,  looking back just in time to see Jack leap for the vines, only to immediately slip straight down and land in the thick mud face first, drawing a collective 'Ooooooo' and cringes from surrounding cadets, as well as a loud "Your dead fluff butt!" from the Major. Nick didn't have time to gawk, only giving Jack a faux salute as soon as the bunny cleared the mud from his eyes to see it. Next up were the monkey bars, another exercise Nick excelled at. It was all body weight to strength ratio. Be too heavy and you needed shoulder and arm strength. Having an iron grip also helped, larger mammals like elephants and rhino's had a severe disadvantage having to carry their massive frames across the large gaps. Nick once again was blessed with his light weight, grabbing the bars and swinging from bar to bar rather effortlessly and swiftly, arriving on the other side at the head of the pack.

Nick turned once more to check on Jack, only to find him staring at the bars like some sort of personal nightmare.  It gave the fox some sort of sick satisfaction seeing the bunny fail, maybe as some sort of retribution from all the hatred thrown his way from their kind. Yet it also filled him with sympathy for Jack, as that same discrimination hit quite close to home. 

Jack leaped up, wrapping his paws around the slick bars, climbing forward slowly. He made it to the forth bar before he slipped, sending him down a good ten feet into the mud for a second time, unmoving. Nick actually wondered if he was OK after a few moments, before the bunny lifted his head up in a gasp for breath. It didn't make sense, why was Jack having a difficult time with these? While not an expert on rabbits, Nick guessed Jack couldn't be more than thirty or forty pounds. He had practically no weight to him, he should be acing these types of courses. Nick had better things to worry about than the bunny, like his own fitness, not exactly doing well himself, he just had to make it through the week, just five days left.... 

—————

The first week was a nightmare of sore muscles, broken egos (tank fully no bones) and tasteless food, with the occasional yet brief paradisiac shower in between the madness, but it was at long last over. Nick's body had finally adjusted to the constant abuse by day five, no longer feeling like death in the morning. He still had trouble waking up on time, but had avoided the dreaded ice bucket, even by seconds, leaving Jack disappointed. 

Over the course of the week Nicks relationship with the rabbit had evolved into a healthy rivalry of sorts. It became clear after the fourth day that the two of them were the worst cadets by a fair margin. Nick had still yet to conquer the dreaded ice wall, leaving Jack to at least get his quota of iced fox every day. Nick had a sneaking suspicion that Jack waited to see the vulpine take his icy plunge before going over the wall himself. The just desserts were all to succulent and sweet, as the fox took it upon himself to watch the rabbit take his mud baths with large shit eating smile from ear to ear. In some ways the rabbit served as both a distraction from the grueling training and motivation to push himself. 

The rivalry worked both ways, since neither of them wanted to be in last place by the time the Major started grading their progress. The polar bear had taken note of the rivalry,  pitting the two against each other whenever she could. With the start of week two, the trainers were now being introduced to a new inside course. The room, or more accurately building resembled a large warehouse made to look like the streets and alleyways of downtown Zootopia, adorned with fake brick walls made of painted wood, many bits of rubbish strown everywhere, newspapers, puddles, dumpsters, fences, the whole nine yards. From Nick's experience, having spent many-a-hour in places just like this, it was quite accurate, even how worn it looked, making him wonder if its layout was taken from an actual place. 

"Listen up cadets! Today you will be conducting a new simulation. I would like to introduce you to Instructor Howlson." She pointed over to the slightly short wolf standing beside her, dressed in a white T-shirt and a pair of khakis who simply waved to the class. To Nick he more resembled a large male arctic fox than a wolf. "Today will be the start of pursuit training. In the field there will be times when you must chase down a fleeing suspect on foot. Since tranquilizers and tasers are only to be used against hostile individuals,  it will leave you with no option but a chase. Weapons should never be your first option. Now, who would like to volun—"

" Me! "

Everyone's head turned to see a very over enthusiastic Ram with his arm up in the air." It was Ben who wore a very eerie grin that fit his face it was like he had been born with it. "Chasing down suspects has got to be the the funnest part of being a cop." He stepped forward, his over confident grin never leaving his face. 

The Major didn't seem quite confident, but relented. "Very well. Stand on the line. The suspect gets a five second head start. All you have to do is touch him, no need to take it further than that." 

Everyone was still reeling from the sudden outburst, even Jack, who still had his arm frozen halfway in midair, before finally relenting.

Ben and Howlson took places at the starting line, both looking forward, all eyes on them. The Major walked over to a nearby stand of monitors, where a second officer, a snow white ferret sat,  watching the screens intensely. Each screen had images of the course set up, having every angle ready to watch, ready to score the cadets on their performance, keeping the actual scores a secret as to not give advantages to those who go later. He glanced over to the Major, who nodded back. With a few key presses and a louder one at the end the course sprang to life, a loud beeping before a countdown began from ten. 

Everyone watched as the countdown hit 5, emitting a small buzz, causing Howlson to bolt from his location, dashing down the 'streets' in a straight line, trying to cover as much ground as possible.  With the buzz as the counter hit 0, Ben dashed after his 'suspect', closing the distance quite quickly, especially considering his size and species. Howlson ran down an ally out of view, with Ben right after him. 

With the two out of view, everyone turned to the monitors, which clearly displayed the chase in high quality. It didn't take long for Ben to close the gap, but the wolf suddenly turned on a dime, running in an ally to the right, picking up a nearby cushion, throwing it behind him. Ben rounded the corner just in time to get pelted in the face, stunning him briefly, drawing a thick bout of laughter from the entire class. It seemed that the cushion had considerably more weight to them than expected, probably stuffed with a gel from the way it impacted. Ben huffed and a scowl formed on his face. He did not like being made a fool. He stormed off after the wolf, who now had a large smile stretching his face, clearly enjoying this a great deal. 

Ben once again managed to close the distance quickly enough just as the two arrived at a chain link fence that seemed to be torn in half, with a small section missing in the center, allowing the wolf to scrap through unharmed just quick enough to avoid the Ram. Howls on turned and gave a salute beforedashing off across a street with several mammalequinns blocking most of the street. 

Ben seemed to be having a big issue. Hooves were not great for climbing fences, and the fence seemed to shabby and ready to fall over for anything larger than a wolf, meaning the only way through was the gap. To embarrassed to go around, he forced his way through the gap, arriving on the other side unharmed. The class let out a collective 'ooooooooo' from the results, which Ben was just now realizing as he looked himself over. The fence had torn off his wool in chunks, leaving him a raggedy half sheered mess straight from a horror movie. The shocked expression on the ram' face dissolved into pure unadulterated rage. A rams wool was never to be messed with, just like a foxes tail, and now he had lost it due to the wolf. Ben lost it. He erupted from his location, knocking objects out of the way instead of going around them, his hooves clicking the stony floor with every step, running after the wolf who had no idea what a the ram was now on a war path. It didn't take him long to notice, with the ram making as much noise as a freight train behind him, causing the wolf to pick up the pace, turning down what appeared to be a market of sorts, tightly packed with mammalquins. Howlson expertly weaved through the crowd with such ease it made Nick question whether he had past experience  in the Olympics.  

Ben did not carry such grace, as he opted to see roll through them without a care—No, Nick was sure that Ben didn't even see them at this point, he was seeing blood. The wolf seemed to notice this as well, making a sharp turn, but the ram managed to stay on top of him, lunging forward, tackling the wolf down to the ground, raising his hoof to strike the wolf, who put his arms up in defense. Two large white arms wrapped around the rams shoulders, plucking him off the wolf without an ounce of effort. 

"Settle down cadet.. Cadet Sheeply stop at once!" The major roared, snapping the Ram out of his attempted assault, or possibly murder.

Suddenly realizing his position he swiftly adopted a smile. "OK OK! I wasn't actually gonna hurt him I swear!"

The lie was believed by exactly no one. Ben was soon set down, now out of breath as his rage filled run caught up to him. "So.. I caught him? How'd I do?" He said, now proud of himself. 

The Major nodded over to the ferret, who picked up her clipboard and pawd it over to the Major. The bear reviewed to tales, looking up to the ram. "Cadet Sheeply. Your time to catch the perpetual was two minutes and thirty five seconds, outstanding. Well within the top ten percent the course has ever seen." The glow coming off the ram could have been used to light tundra town for a month, even going so far as to give an arm pump. "HOWEVER!"  Ben froze as the harsh tone. "You injured TWENTY FIVE civilians in the process. If you were an officer you would have had your badge stripped and melted into a paper weight within the hour of making the arrest, and probably drawn two dozen lawsuits to the precinct. Your overall score, out of a possible one hundred, is...negative sixty four. For clarification, the previous worst score in this academy was seven, made by rhino. That accidentally crushed a car with a family inside."

The major continued." You need to get that anger under control if you wish to pass this class, and get it under control soon. Their is no room for an officer that let's his anger best him. Now... Who's next? "

Surprisingly Jack was not the one to volunteer. Nick took note at the deep thought the rabbit seemed to be in, curious as to what thought kept the eager rabbit from volunteering second.  The cheetah was the next to go, now Identified as Mixie Clawhauser. The chase was shorter than the first, but not by much. Howlson had changed his strategy, taking many more tight turns and less straight aways, using the cheetahs inability to keep speed to his advantage. There were, however only so many sharp turns before he was forced into a street, with the cheetah catching him soon after. She placed firmly in the top ten percent at a score of ninety six,  this time with no disaster in her wake.

The third and forth to go were Larry Wolfson and Garry Howler, which surprised Nick who had assumed them brothers by the way they acted. Both of them did well, but not overly so. Until now Howlson had used any type of advantage to flee that he could. If the officer in pursuit was slow, he used speed, if they were fast but lacked agility, he took sharp turns. Now that it was wolf VS wolf, his skills were showing in their own light. He was very agile, even for a wolf, bounding over fences like a bunny, or stopping just short of being grabbed and dodging under the pursuing cadets arms and dashing in the opposite direction. In the end they clocked in with scores of seventy five and seventy three, fairly respectable scores for the first try. 

The next two to go were the largest cadets, the elephant and the rhino. It was basically just a requirement to pass, as larger officers, especially elephants were almost never the officers to chase down suspects. Most officers had special roles to play. For canids like wolves, they were assigned to be sniffers and night vision officers due to their heightened senses. For larger officers such as the rhino's and elephants, they were assigned to be bodyguards, since nobody wanted to go through the indomitable shields. They preformed admirably despite their size, earning scores of forty and forty one, barely adequate for most mammals, yet the two seemed quite proud. 

Nick waited for Jack once again, but he still seemed content to let others go head. "I'll go next." Nick volunteered, finally gaining the rabbits attention. Nick was smart, he waited purposefully to gain knowledge about the course. If this were anywhere in Zootopia he would have known the streets like the back of his paw, but this was new, so he waited and studied.

Nick took his place next to Howlson, who seemed quite happy to see the fox step up. Another thing Nick noticed was that the wolf wasn't out of breath in the least, signifying his ridiculous conditioning. Looking back, everyone seemed to keen in on the fox, it seemed like all eyes were on him. The countdown began, Nick planting his feet, getting down into a sprinters position. He knew he couldn't win by speed, but every bit helped. The countdown hit 5 and the wolf was off. Nick noticed he didn't take the shortest turn, which was more agility obstacles than speed. The wolf was trying to win by speed, which Nick had expected. The countdown hit 0 and Nick sprinted after him with a speed that surprised even him; he was no longer tired from his morning run, and it would take several minutes for the soreness to kick in, plenty of time. Howlson approached the same gate that he used with Ben, wool still hanging off of the wire. Nick jumped through after him without even slowing down. He knew this wasn't the reason the wolf had taken this route. The market was up ahead, and Nick knew the wolf would avoid that like the plague; Howlson was agile, but Nick didn't even need to Bob and weave, able to practically go through them with his smaller size. However there was an ally just before the marker that led to a long straight away, which would leave Nick in the dust. Nick had expected this before the run had even started, and took a shortcut into another ally. 

Nick knew that this route cut out back into the straight away, and was significantly shorter. Wolfson hadn't even realized Nick's disappearance until he entered the straightaway, turning back to look for just a moment, only to see the ally empty. It unnerved him, but he kept running anyway, the goal was to not get caught, not keep track of the pursuer. Nick lept over a stack of boxes and onto a nearby dumpster, jumping over a fence and right in the path of the wolf, who's eyes nearly bugged out of his head as the fox nearly landed on him, avoiding Nick's grabbing paw by maybe an inch before he was forced into another route. This had been Nick's plan all along, this was the same route that the wolf had avoided at the start, with all of the agility obstacles. It would have been better to catch him with the jump, but that was unlikely. 

Nick chased the wolf, who was now in a losing battle, dodging around trash cans that Nick could simply avoid due to the ally's compact nature, just slightly to small for a wolf to have full movement, but perfect for a fox. Nick watched as Wolfson clipped nearly every garbage bin in his path, stumbling a few times allowing Nick to close the distance. The exit was coming up faster then expected to., so Nick was forced to make a move, picking up a nearby obstacle usually used by the wolf itself, a trashcan lid with a lining of gel, and hurled it like a Frisbee at the wolves back, catching him right as he went to leap over a trash bin, causing him to stumble and fall to his knees. The wolf looked back just in time. 

"Tag!" Nick proclaimed,  tapped his shoulder. 

Nick and Wolfson, or Jeff as he told the fox, walked back to the start. Jeff was quite impressed by the fox. 

"Wilde!" The voice nearly caused Nick to jump out of his uniform. "Can you explain what you Just did to the class?" Major Friedkin asked. 

Nick gulped, somehow thinking he broke some kind of rule. "Y-Yes Sir! I uuh.. I watched the other cadets on the monitors and mapped the layout in my head, taking notes of how Jeff-Wolfson evaded his pursuers. I learned what routes he took and planned my route accordingly to catch him using the two advantages I had over him. My agility in small spaces, and my ability to plan ahead."

The class, especially Jack were stunned by the foxes forethought. Nick continued. " In lay-mammals-terms... I out foxed him. " Nick put on his sly grin, wishing he had his aviators on him. 

The stare his instructor gave him bore a hole to his soul." You out 'foxed' a suspect you were supposed to take down by foot? You were _supposed_ to use your speed and agility here, not your Wit!.... Well done!" The bear went from agitated to impressed at the flip of a switch. She turned back to the class. "Understand cadets! There are always more than one way to solve a problem. If you cannot solve an issue one way, find another. If you do not have speed..." She motioned to Nick. "Be smarter. Out 'fox' your problem. Good job wild." She took the clipboard from the ferret, marking his score. "Wilde, your final score with a time of three minutes four seconds... Is eighty, congratulations. Now, who—" 

"I VOLUNTEER!" Jack shouted, his eyes locked onto Nick's. 

 _'Bunny has something to prove...'_ Nick thought

Jack marched towards the starting area, completely focused on his task. 'No way I let the fox win' Jack took deep breaths, rolling his shoulders, loosening his body. A glance over to the wolf showed the expected, a smug grin looking down to him. Jack was practically overdosing on smug and sly by now. Jack had always been underestimated, it came with the species. It was true, he hadn't had the results he wanted here at the academy, but he did a excell at a few things, and chasing was certainly one of those. The first buzzer pulled Jack from his mind, watching the wolf take off down a nearby ally. Jack had been watching the footage same as Nick, so he knew that ally had a very large fence in it, one without a hole. The wolf was trying to use Jack's height to his advantage. The second buzz and Jack was off, leaping off the wall and bolting at speeds that made the cheetah whistle as she watched. The wolf was over the fence by the time Jack turned the corner, running down an ally filled with water, a slipping hazard. 

Jack jumped onto a nearby trashcan lid, jumping as high as he could against the fence. In his mind, he had planned to clear the fence with just that jump, but he fell short by a few costly inches,  having to pull himself up once before clearing it. He had overestimated himself again, just like his first day, and it was costly. Jack always felt the need to try harder just to be equal, and often he overestimated himself because of this. Down the second ally Jack caught sight of the wolf jumping over the deep puddles, assuming Jack couldn't get over them due to his smaller size. If Jack stepped in one it would be trouble. From watching the rhino, Jack knew they were at least two feet deep, enough that Jack could bathe in them easily. He sprinted, jumping over the first few before coming to the big one. It was at least ten feet across, practically a pool, but Jack managed to clear it by the skin of his teeth. Rabbit legs were sometimes quite useful, especially with the extra few inches he got from his hare side. Hares were also natural sprinters, since they don't burrow, and Jack was hot on the wolves paws. The wolf turned back and was visibly panicking from Jack's close proximity. ' _sometimes it pays to be underestimated.'_

The wolf made a last ditch desperation play, jumping against a dumpster and leaping backwards up and over Jack, hitting the ground and ready to bolt. Jack was staring him in the face, his paw placed on the wolves leaning shoulder, he had stopped as soon as the wolf had hit the dumpster like that, he saw it coming a mile away after watching Wolfson dodge under the others arms when caught, since he couldn't due that to Jack, who was shorter. Wolfsons face went from surprised to defeated, back into a smile. "Good job cadet."

Jack and Jeff walked back to the cadets, who all had shocked expressions. Jack was simply drinking in their faces like a camel dieing of thirst.

"Cadet Savage! Great work. You not only caught the suspect but did it in a timely manor without even disturbing the trash can Iid you used to vault the fence. Your final time was three minutes and three seconds. Final score: eighty six, congratulations, you might make a fine officer yet, keep it up."

Encouragement was not something Jack received often. He liked to make a show of how little he cared about others opinions, especially when they were negative; he never let them get him down, not even a bit, they were just white noise to him, static in the background that let him focus on his goals. Praise however, he appreciated, he could go miles on a compliment, just fuel for the furnace. Jack took his place in line as the Major calls on the next cadet. He wanted to hear the next smart ass remark from his _favorite_ smug fox. Jack looked up to him, and like he expected, the fox was shocked. Jack grinned up at him. ' _now just for the smart-ass remark._..' only that's not what he got. The fox nodded with a completely genuine smile. 

"Good job stripes." Nick stated, looking back up to the monitors to watch the next cadet, the otter who was once again passing expectations. 

' _Good... Job?'_ Jack was certain he had hit his head on that dumpster. Did the fox just... compliment him? No no no, that wasn't possible. The fox was an ass. A huge, hippo sized ass. With a hole to match. He doesn't compliment! Red is red, blue is blue, red isn't blue! Error! By the time Jack's brain stopped lagging the rest of the cadets had completed the course. The results were displayed on the monitors. Jack had placed third, with Nick forth. First place: Mixie the cheetah. Second pace: Jenny Otterton. ' _Wait, the otter beat me? How? None of what happened in the last ten minutes makes sense! Forget it Jack, you got classes. At least you prepared for those in advance...'_

The classrooms are what Jack had expected. Several rows of desks, the same models used in schools with the curved side to slide in, no drawers of any kind. Cheap yet effected, and in various sizes from small at the front to large at the back so the larger students could see over the small ones. Jack had always taken the front row of course, not many bunnies in the city. Jack took his seat, right next to Nick. Jack had made sure never to call himself that however, not until the fox called him by his own real name. The instructor was a male camel, who began the class by calling out names as if he couldn't see that every seat was full. Jack felt like he was back in elementary when he had to call out "here". 

"Okay class, I know many of you are excited to be here. For today we are doing a preliminary test to see what you know." The Camel started. 

Jack couldn't be any more distracted, his brain still trying to uncover the mystery of the fox. He didn't understand why it bothered him so much, was this his goal? That might be a little to clever even for Wilde. Jack had already been forced to reevaluate the fox after the quite stunning display of wit he displayed at the pursuit course. He had originally thought the only strength the fox had was his unusual ability to be irritating as hell. If their was one species that was stranger to be a cop than a bunny, It was a fox.  Yet the way he thought ahead was real promise. A mammal could get in to shape with effort, they could aquire book smarts, but natural problem solving was harder to develop. Jack had done the same thing, but not at that level. Jack thought three steps ahead, the fox had thought ahead six. ' _Uuuh what am I doing, thinking that Wilde would make a good cop?'_

The test was exactly what Jack had expected, police call outs, various procedures to fallow when chasing, apprehending and bringing in suspects. Officers weren't required to be fully blown law students, but needed to know plenty of legal conduct and laws. The students were not meant to or expected to complete the test on the first day, but Jack had prepared early, and was done well before time. His mind was once again drawn to the fox, who seemed to be staring into space. 

For Nick, things hadn't worked out as hoped, but had as expected. He was having issues with the physical aspects of the training, while the mental aspects were playtime for him. Fifteen minutes was all it took to complete the test. Being an expert on breaking the law was occasionally quite useful, knowing all of the inns and outs (especially the outs). His eyes drifted over to Jack, who was vigorously putting pencil to paper until the twenty minute mark. Jack hadn't performed as expected. Nick had expected to roll over the bunny's efforts with ease. Nick was, after all bigger and stronger. That's how the world worked after all, bigger was better. The bigger you were the easier things were, nobody underestimated you, you were taken seriously.

There are also no large distrusted mammals; all of the 'untrustworthy' and 'sly' were smaller predators of some kind, those who society deemed predators but also needed to trick or con prey into their open maws. Forget the small inconsequential fact that predators stopped hunting prey thousands of years ago, that they had forsaken their natural food source for peace and conscience. The fact that predators no longer wanted to, or could even bring themselves to bring down their claws on another thinking, breathing mammal of any species for food. None of that mattered, because at the end of the day, if you had claws and teeth pointer than others, you were a monster waiting to lose your self control and rip the flesh out of your neighbor.  

But if you lacked the ability to chomp down on most prey, like foxes and weasels, you were somehow worse than those that could. Because how would you kill and eat larger prey if not physically? Never mind the fact that smaller predators hunted smaller prey—no that would be to simple, you must have a way to eat the larger prey. And if it wasn't physically, it was mentally, through tricks and mischievousness, and foxes, foxes got the short end of that stick like a kick in the balls. 

Yet here he was, a fox who finally got a chance to be the big guy, larger and stronger than his competition, and he had failed. OH he had failed miserably! Even counting his victories in the rainforest training and the desert course, Nick was behind the bunny. He wanted to yell, to scream, but couldn't bring himself to. He felt...proud of the rabbit somehow. If someone had told Nick two weeks ago he be proud of a rabbit for defying expectations he would have laughed himself unconscious. After all, you could only be what the world saw you as. Nick? He was a sly, untrustworthy fox. And that was correct. And a bunny that wanted to be a cop? Oh that's a dumb bunny. No doubt. 

After watching Jack, however it made Nick think of himself, trying to break the stereotypes. He wished he had saw that earlier, but he had been to stubborn to see the irony. He still hated the rabbit. No doubt. But he respected him now, especially after the course. ' _uuug, why am I thinking Savage would be a good cop? Because he would dip shit. Better than most.'_ His train of thought was interrupted by the sounds of the other cadets getting up, passing their tests in before leaving for dinner. 

Jack sat with his two friends Garry and Larry, the two wolves. He knew them from outside the academy. They had worked as security for a couple years and finally decided they wanted to do something more proactive. Security was defensive, reacting to threats, while policing them was active, and preventative. They had craved to do better, to protect and serve in a better way. The two had already met the physical requirements of the training, but had issues with the study. Jack had been there to help them since he had always been a good study. Jack had always wanted to help mammals, but being a cop was always off the table, so he didn't even try. Then, two weeks before the academy opened up, the mammal inclusion initiative was passed, and it hit Jack like a nuclear explosion of opportunity. He could be a cop. Thanks to Larry and Garry, he already had the knowledge. When he told them but his decision to be a cop, they were ecstatic, and immediately put him into training. A grueling two weeks later and he was barely fit enough to pass the physical, but he was in. He was in. 

"So that fox huh?" Larry stared, shoveling mashed potatoes into his muzzle. 

"Right? He's smart. Like really smart. Clever." Garry followed. "What do you think Jack?" 

Jack snapped out of his thoughts at the mention of his name, only vaguely having been listening to the conversation. "He's got street smarts, good planning. Not sure on his book smarts though. And he's completely out of shape for this. I thought I was bad but he's worse." Jack stated, glancing over to the fox who was devouring his meal so fast he could use a funnel. 

"Yeah, you are out of shape." Garry confirmed. Larry and Jack stared at the white wolf. Garry was an innocent type, far to good hearted to even realize his rude comment. It could get him into trouble or tricked occasionally, but it was on of his better features. The world would be much better off with more Garry's in it. Realizing the table was quiet, Garry looked up to see the two staring at him. "What...?" 

The two laughed kind heartily.  "Nothing Garry. Your right, I'm out of shape." Jack confirmed, but with a lack of sadness or resentment. 

Without missing a beat Larry jabbed the rabbits shoulder. "You'll get there Jack. We both believe in you. No doubt in our heads. You'll be better than both for us." He motioned to himself and Garry with his paws, Garry nodding back with a smile. "Better than all of us Jack." He opened his arms wide to signify the whole room. " I see it in you. And I'm not wrong often about these things. Instinct. Your compassion always points true north, always has. Your the straightest arrow I've ever seen. You weren't made for this job. This job was made for you." 

The two wolves always knew what to say to boost Jack's confidence. Right about everything. If he had their vote of confidence, nothing else mattered." Thanks you two. Though I wouldn't say I'm the 'straightest of arrows' " The three had a good chuckle.  By the time Jack looked back over to the fox, he was gone. But Jack felt better than he had since arrived. Things might be looking up. As long as Jack was on a vertical incline, as long as the possibility existed, he would raise to the challenge. 

————— 

"Aaaauuuggggg sooooo gggeeewwwwdddd" Nick gargle, his muzzle wide open as the hot steamy water pored into his maw, dripping out and down his fur. With the pursuit course, Nick finally had time to enjoy his shower. No more five minute rush, no threat of an ice bucket, no mammals waiting on him. He was on time, and had shoved his dinner down his throat just to extend this nirvana by a few minutes. He slathered himself in fur shampoo, taking his time on every limb, brushing himself with a delicate passion. He would stay here for twenty five minutes of pure blissful paradise, enjoying every second. 

The other males in the shower enjoyed their showers less. The fox was enjoying the water a little... too much. It made them all uncomfortable, most enough so that they left quickly to avoid the off chance that the fox might start playing with himself in the open. 

With the training being less severe and more focused, and including the classes, Nick finally had energy to spare. He could have used it for light training, but he didn't want to waste the little free time he had awake and not covered in sweat attempting to cover himself in sweat. He wandered around the facility, seeing all of the lounge areas he never had the time nor strength to visit. It had always been: wake up, run, lunch, shower, training, dinner, shower,  bed. He had forsaken his free time in exchange for more sleep, a necessary sacrifice to keep his body going. He had no illusions that if he didn't get extra sleep he wouldn't be able to keep up. Now out of the week one nightmare, he had the energy and time. 

The campus didn't have much. There were a few cadets who seemed to have ordered pizza, something Nick hadn't even thought to do. He considered asking for a piece, but that was quickly dashed when he noticed that it was Ben's pie, and the looks he was getting just being in the same room made him quickly scurry away. What ever issue the sheep had with him before was now tenfold, probably due to Nick's performance and Ben's lack there of.   

Nick spotted Jack as his wolves simply sitting on a sofa together, Jack with a book in paw and the wolves chatting it up. It reminded Nick of his few friends out of the academy. Boy how accurate 'few' was. Nick knew everyone, but no one really knew Nick. Too many friends could be as lethal as too few. Nick subconsciously slapped himself for not bringing any form of entertainment. No phones allowed didn't mean no fun allowed.

Nick wondered how Finnick was doing. The little guy had been shocked to learn Nick was going to be a cop, after he assumed it was because Nick was delirious due to a concussion. Before that he just laughed... A lot. Like a _lot_. After he found out the next day he was serious, Fin had Initially been furious. Nick was one of the fennec's few friends, perhaps only friend. Fin didn't seem to need many, more of a loner. At first he thought he was losing Nick, then he thought of how useful a dirty cop would be to have in his pocket. Nick dashed those ideas quickly, he wanted to be a good cop. Not one that abused his power, not a dirty cop, but one that even a criminal could look at with respect. There weren't many of those. Finnick had eventually relented, and given Nick his blessing, even going as far as giving Nick a salute when he left to the academy. 

His thoughts drifted to his mother, who still had no clue he was here. He didn't want her to know, not until he was positive he'd graduate. He didn't want to show her him failing, even if he had tried. It would just leave her opinion of him lower. 

Nick decided to get a drink and return to his bunk. He'd find some fun another time. 

Jack took notice of the fox as he wandered around. Maybe it was his instincts, but he always knew when the fox was in the room, many times before he even entered it. Maybe it was his scent, fox scent was strong, overpowering for wolves and strong enough for a rabbit to smell. Maybe it was a survival thing, he couldn't smell many mammals scents apart unless he was on top of the scent, not very useful at that distance, and even then it was a generalization: this is canine of some sort, this is feline, this is an ungulate. But fox was distinct, as distinct as a carrot is to a rabbit, or how chocolate is too distinct to mistake. Jack was glad he was only half rabbit, he couldn't stand eating the same vegetable day in and day out. He still ate carrots once a day, but that was it, and it wasn't an urge. Some rabbits ate carrots like vegetable crack, it was actually disturbing.  Jack only had _one_  pair of carrot boxers... 

The fox seemed to wander without purpose. He talked to no one, didn't sit down with anyone, and only picked up a single drink before heading towards the bunk. Sure, of course the fox isn't going to have many friends, he was a fox, foxes were generally not well liked. But no one? The fox didn't seem to be making any real effort, but Jack could tell he was lonely. No one made an effort to talk to him either, again not surprising. It made Jack's heart ache a bit. But not enough to help. The fox was an ass. He did compliment him...but one mediocre compliment didn't undo all of the smart ass remarks nor his initial impression. Jack resigned Nick's lack of friends to the 'not my problem' category. 

Around two hours later, Jack finally started to feel drowsy. Larry and Garry had left some time ago to their bunk, leaving Jack the last one out. It was good timing because it was closing time for the lounge and it gave Jack his eight hours before the morning run. He made his way back to the bunk, seeing the fox finally under his covers for once. Usually he just face planted into his bunk. Jack sat on his bed, rubbing his face into his paws. He laid down, ready to head to sleep, when a thought popped into his head. Jack had received his test back earlier that day, which meant that Wilde had as well. Jack had stuffed it into his drawer, Wilde probably did as well, not like there was a lot of places to put it. Jack had scored a healthy ninety on his test, well above passing for the year, let along the first day. It made Jack curious to the foxes outcome. The fox had seemed out of it during the test. Maybe in thought? But Jack never actually saw him write down a single answer. Did he know nothing about the subjects, or had he finished earlier?

Jack mentally slapped himself, that would be a huge invasion of privacy. He wouldn't like it if the fox dug through his own things, so that was out, he wouldn't do that... _'maybe one peek'_ Jack had always been to curious for his own good. He silently took a step off the bed and over to the fox's drawer, opening it slowly. Lights would be out in the next few minutes, so he had to act fast. He didn't have to look far, the test was right on top. Jack pulled it out, looking down to the bottom. A large bold 'one hundred' was printed with a smiley face next to it.

 _'One hundred...? He aced it!?'_ His attention snapped up to the fox, still out cold _. 'That's either amazing...or insanely suspicious. I helped teach Garry and Larry for months and I got a ninety! This fox aces it on his first try? Maybe he bribed the teacher? No! Don't be prejudice, Wilde is smart, you know that. Now you just know that it's not just forethought, he's legit smart—No. Just because he's smart doesn't explain why he knows the whole damn rules and regulations for being a police officer. Maybe he trained for this way in advance—No, he couldn't have. A fox is just under the M.I.I. size requirements, and weight requirements for sure. And he certainly was not prepared for the physical aspects. He's a fish out of water... At least physically. Ugh I'm tired, my brain hurts. Bed now, sneaky fox later. '_

Jack slipped the test back into Nick's drawer just as he found it, resigning to give this more thought another time. He crawled back into bed and let the sweet mentally tax free sleep take him. He dreamt about foxes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had fun with this chapter. I'm much more happy with his than the first one. I may go revisit it and fix it up. At least to switch the thought and search changes.
> 
> I noticed many writers using 'italics' for thoughts instead of starting a new row for each, so I changed to this format and am happy with the results.


	3. What's the dealio?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More progress. Training, relationship advances.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A wild instructor appears!

A little over a month had gone by since the start of the academy. Nick and Jack had improved, albeit marginally, they were still not on track but the improvement was showing. Major fried in had begun grading the students, and the scores were not pretty. The only redeeming factors the two had were outweighed by the lack of physical conditioning, yet the two were no less confident or driven to succeed. With the first month out of the way, it was time for the Major to introduce another new course. The cadets had been lead to a new room, one with a large boxing ring in the center, with a well built male lion in the corner. He wore police blue shorts, a white T-shirt tightly clinging to his frame and two red gloves on his paws. He was slimmer than most lions, but his build screamed 'compact power'. He wore a heavy smile, seemingly just as excited to preform his area of expertise as the last trainer Howlson had been. 

"OK cadets!" The Major shouted, drawing the classes attention "Listen up. Most of you are starting to reap the benefits from your training. Your stronger and faster than you were. You have even learned how to chase down a fleeing suspect. BUT! None of that means squat if you are unable to apprehend them. First and foremost, paw to paw combat is a last resort. You are to avoid it unless it is absolutely necessary, but things go wrong. Tranquilizers jam, taser miss with limited ammo. You will eventually run into a criminal that you must take down physically, and you need to be ready!

"Once again we will be assessing your current aptitude. This is Instructor Leodre."  The major pointed over to the lion, who waved back kindly. "He was a world class boxer before he retired and now owns a popular gym in Sahara Square tailored to train future boxing and kick boxing stars. He also has a high level of respect for the ZPD, and generously offers to help teach new recruits how to fight. Now... Who's first? " The bear smiled, looking over the cadets. 

Unlike with the pursuit course no one seemed eager to get into the ring with lion. Perhaps it was because of how comfortable he seemed in the ring, like it was his territory, or maybe the cadets had taken Nick's advice to scope things out before jumping head first, but their were no volunteers. This seemed to amuse the lion, who laughed softly. 

"Come on now, " Spoke Leodre, in a far more calming and friendly tone than expected. "I promise not to cause any long term damage, I'm here to train, not to harm." 

The class grumbled, looking each other over, before the Major interrupted. "Ben, get in the ring." She commanded, much to the sheep's surprise. 

The Ram had been treading thin ice since the pursuit course nearly three weeks ago, and was not ready to irritate the Major anymore than he had, less he be simply expelled. "Yes Major..." he grumbled, stepping up into the ring. After having gloves and a helmet strapped on him, he turned to look at the lion, who's expression had morphed from friendly to predatory in the time it took for him to get set up. Ben already had issues with predators, mostly foxes, but all predators were bad in his book, and the way this lion was looking at him, it sent shivers through to his soul. It screamed at him everything his parents told him about predators. They might act civil, harmless, they might wear fancy cloths, suits, and ties. But in the end, they are predators. When everything was said and done, they craved one thing. 

You are meat. 

You are prey. 

You are food.

Nothing more. 

It sent dueling emotions raging through him. To run and hide, to get away from this monster, this savage. How dare he make me feel weak, how dare he make me feel vulnerable. Ben's rage formed once again on his face, he always let the anger win. It was better to be angry and powerful than meek and afraid. As soon as the bell dinged Ben dashed forward at the predator, reeling his arm back and taking one large swing to the lions face. The swing was wide and powerful, but slow. Leodre dodged into the blow, going right over his head. The lion took one jab to the rams face, hitting him square on the nose. The ram staggered from the stunning blow, his body collapsing in on itself a moment later, hitting the ground in small cloud of dust, his rear in the air and face down on the ground.

Nobody said a word, even the Major. The entire fight had lasted no more than two seconds, with only two swings, and only one hitting its mark. 

"Over extending." Leodre started, snapping the classes attention to him, now back in his calming appearance. "Ben became angry and over confident in his abilities. He over reached, and left himself vulnerable. With his forward momentum it was easy to land one soft blow, using his own weight and force against him in a counter."   While he talked a nearby gazelle had climbed into the ring to tend to the sheep. He hadn't been knocked completely unconscious, but was far to dizzy to walk on his own, carried off to the nurses office. 

The next to volunteer was a black bear by the name of Gregor Fin, who believed his size would give him an advantage. It certainly had, making it difficult for the smaller lion to land any blows to the head, but it didn't change the outcome. Leodre showed off his agility, literally dancing circles around the slower bear, lading sharp and precise blows to his exposed belly, knocking the wind from the ursine, all while managing to dodge every blow the bear sent his way. He proved to not only be strong but fast, earning his fame. 

Nick was content to sit back and watch as always, picking up on the lions subtle tells. They were well hidden, for a boxer, but the fox hadn't survived on the streets for as long as he did without picking up on the signs for a fight. The way the lions legs shifted for one were a huge tell. No matter what move he made, the lions legs tensed up or shifted direction. Boxing was all about using your legs for added power. Strong punches started at the feet, driving the body's energy forward and into the point of contact. 

Nearly the entire class had gone before Nick even thought of volunteering. This exercise was against the foxes natural talents. He didn't have the power in his legs or his arms, so his punches would be weak. It was hard to out think being punched in the face. This time Jack volunteered before Nick, stepping into the ring and being strapped up. Nick watched eagerly, this was a make or break moment for the bunny. If he couldn't put up a fight, he'd never make it as an officer. 

The lion seemed to be quite a mused by the bunny's presence, but when the bell dinged, he went right back into his predatory focus, being the first to strike. His punch was a light and fast hook, covering much of the rabbits area, but Jack leaped into the opposite direction, spinning around to the lions back into the center of the ring. It was an impressive display of speed, but not much else. Before Jack could get a hit in Leodre had spun around ready to intercept. Jack is only stood there waiting for the lion to try again, and he did, this time a series of jabs. Some came close, but Jack dodged them all. Leodre stepped forward, eager to regain the distance Jack had put in between them, only for Jack to step forward at the same time, putting him well within the lions striking zone, but perhaps to far, as the Lion tried to separate himself, no room to punch. 

It became clear to Nick why, Jack's reach was long for a rabbit, but far shorter than the lions, meaning he couldn't strike at nearly the distance the lion could. Jack threw a blow right into the loons solar plexus, quickly dodging the return hook and backing away. The rabbit had actually been the first to land a blow, but the second issue was rearing its head: power. Jack's blow hadn't phased the lion at all. A similar hit from a larger mammal could put a lion onto its back, but Jack didn't have the power.

Even Leodre seemed shocked at the hit, so far he hadn't been hit directly, blocking the occasional punch that came his way. He seemed to be excited, suddenly rushing the rabbit, throwing a hook, only for Jack to duck it, then immediately be hit by the lions Knee, sent flying into the ropes. Nick was surprised by the desire he had to see the rabbit win, considering even rooting for him, if only for a moment. True to Jack's determined nature, he stood, ready for more, which the lion eagerly provided, rushing the bunny. Jack reacted on instinct, trying to evade, but the lion stood practically on top of him at every turn, throwing a few light blows Jack only just dodged. 

Nick wasn't sure if the lion was holding back or If it really was all Jack, but the spar had turned Into quite an entertaining spectacle. Jack charged Leodre once again, surprising the lion enough to throw a quick straight, which Jack dodged by vaulting over it, using both legs to kick the lion in the face. He never made it that far as the lions other fist came down hard on Jack from above just before the Kick landed, knocking Jack to the floor hard enough he bounced. Unlike Ben, Jack seemed completely out cold, enough so that Leodre stripped his gloves off to check on him himself, giving a released sigh. "He's OK. Might wanna check his head but he's OK." 

The lion was visibly embarrassed at his actions, that the bunny had gotten him defensive enough to strike him with more force than intended. Nick took notice of the light swings he had used the entire fight. Maybe in effort to not hurt Jack as much as it was for the added speed. 

"I volunteer." Nick stood in the ring before the lion had chance to even ask for the next cadet. Nick strapped his kits and let the assistant strap on the appropriate sizes helmet. Nick didn't understand why he felt so angry suddenly. All reason to the contrary really, but seeing Jack hit the mat like that had drawn out feelings Nick wasn't used to feeling. Competitiveness, jealousy, possessiveness?  Jack was his rival, so it was his job to knock the rabbit silly. Still, it felt like more than that. Perhaps he was feeling even a little fond of the Jack-ass rabbit. 

That was unlikely to help him now though. Unlike Jack, who got by using his speed and agility advantage, Nick had none. No speed advantage, no agility advantage, and certainly not a strength advantage. Most mammals had some type of advantage to use against each other. Wolves were faster than bison, but weaker. Foxes didn't have many physical advantages on larger animals. They weren't faster or stronger, leaving Nick once again with just hit wit. This had no chance to end up in a victory, but perhaps a moral victory was enough. 

The bell rung and the lion charged. Nick immediately did the unthinkable, stepping into the lion just like Jack had, who threw a jab while rearing back, adjusting to the optimal distance for him. Nick took a step back, drawing him out of range from the jab, before stepping forward again, throwing a punch to the lions stomach. Leodre had been thrown off guard by the clever use of distance management, but he was an expert, stepping back with one paw and throwing the same downward hook that ended Jack. It hit Nick in the shoulder, sending him to the mat in the same way. ' _Oh fuck that hurts.'_

If Nick had just one advantage on the rabbit, it was his size, he could take more punishment, even if just a little. Nick stood, facing the lion, who had expected it to be over. Patting his gloves together, he signified he wasn't finished yet. He had to get at least one good hit in, just a single good hit. Still feeling dazed, Nick let Leodre make the first move, the lion stepping forward for a few jabs, heavier then the ones against Jack, but stronger. Nick focused on moving back and forth, letting a few land too close to his nose. Nick concentrated on the lions legs and footwork, all while never letting his focus leave the lions face, not letting him know he was watching. 

The shifting of each leg burned itself into Nick's short term memory, watching for the subtle signs of the lion getting ready to dash in. Nick constantly adjusted his distance, putting as much in between them as possible to draw the dashes out. His focus slipped and another blow hit him in the chest, sending him to the ground. Luckily it had been at a distance, so it wasn't the end. Nick stood up once again. 

"One more." He proclaimed. In reality, the fox had been in the ring for only just over a minute, but it felt like eons. His body hurt, and he needed a nap. Maybe he'd take one after this next move, maybe forced on him by a thick red glove. Leodre dashed forward, to which Nick dodged left, then right, drawing the lion into the corner of the ring. The lion recovered, dashing once more across the ring to Nick only to be met halfway by the fox. Leodre took a swing while easing backwards, keeping out of the tricky foxes range, only for the same fox to take a step backwards. Just like before, the lion lunged forward, intent on closing the distance, exactly as planned. Nick noticed that whenever the lion had to close the distance to many times in succession he overstepped. Using a speed Nick had kept hidden, he leapt forward, arriving right into the lions shocked face, throwing the heaviest punch he could square on the lions fat nose.

Nick woke up to a stinging sensation on his snout, groaning in discomfort. "Oh shush, it's not that bad." A feminine voice spoke. 

Nick opened his eyes to see the academy nurse,  a rather friendly white tailed deer doe disinfecting his nose with a swab.  He sat up, before feeling two hooves on his shoulders. "There there, just take it slow. You received a nasty hit to the snout. No lasting damage but you might feel dizzy for a moment." She spoke with care. 

She wasn't kidding, Nick was seeing double, and his ears still rung, he needed some aspirin. He shook his head and the symptoms began to die down. 

" Heeeeey slugger. "

Nick turned to see Jack leaning against the door with a wide grin on his face.." Slugger?... Did I get em? "

"Come and see. It's quite a sight." He motioned Nick to fallow, The two walked back into the room to see the cadets hovering around a TV, apparently watching the fight from a camera set up to record the training.  "I caught the end after I came to, just in time to see it." 

Nick couldn't help but notice the smiles as he walked over, before the attention was drawn back to the TV as it was rewound again. Nick watched the recording as he stepped into Leodre, only for it to be a faint and step out, drawing the lion forward in response. But it was a double fake, and Nick stepped back in and landed a savage hit to the lions nose. Only for the lion to land a wide hook onto Nick's snout at the same time. Leodre staggered back in pain, but Nick watched his own body go limp, out like a light, hitting the mat. 

"I didn't even see it coming." Nick spoke, rubbing the sore spot on his nose.

Leodre had watched the clip a dozen times and was impressed, turning to Nick. "How did you know?" He asked.  

"That you over commit when you have to cover distance multiple times in a short period? I saw you do it earlier. The trick was drawing it out without you knowing. Your faster so I had to adjust you to a lower speed or you would have caught me. After a few times I was certain I could get you, and just hoped it was enough to hit. "

Leodre watched the clip again." But you knew that wouldn't have been a victory. So why risk so much just to get one hit in? There were safer ways to get smaller hits in if that was your goal. " He looked at Nick with suspicion. 

"Uuuhh..." Everyone turned to Nick. Nick couldn't help but a quick glance to Jack, hoping no one noticed his bodies betrayal.  "Just... Thought it would earn me a better score." Nick put on a confident reassuring smile, which everyone but Jack bought. The rabbit had seen to many of the foxes grins to know witch were false. 

"Either way, I'll have to correct that little flaw.  Ya know Wilde, most trainers would have missed that. That's a good eye you have. It will do you well as an officer." 

—————

Another month. Things hadn't changed much since the ring. Nick had spent more time with Leodre, and was quite disappointed by the results. After the lion had fixed his flaw, Nick found it impossible to land a hit. He had tried to find another hicup in Leodre's form, but it seemed none existed, or that Nick could identify. He was an expert after all, you don't get to be an expert with tons of flaws in your form. Even Jack had faired better, landing several hits each round on the lion, even if they didn't cause much damage. The fox found himself once again in the back of the pack. He needed something he didn't just pass at, but excelled at. With the start of another month came another course, a shooting range. Nick had never touched guns, to dangerous, high profile, very illegal outside of ranges. Even tranquilizers were unfamiliar to him. 

"Alright cadets. The time has come for weapons training. While always discouraged in favor of other methods, sometimes it is necessary to take down a hostile. You need to feel as comfortable with your weapons as you are with your bear paws." The Major made a show of wiggling her 'bear paws'".  

After a while becoming familiar with the loading and reloading, it was time for actual practice. Truth be told, Nick was not excited for this, guns were always a hazard. Some officers used them without just cause, spraying even smaller mammals with enough tranqs to take down a rhino, and while it was rare, mammals could overdose on them. This was unlikely however, as the ZPD tranquilizers dissolved quickly into the bloodstream, putting you to sleep in swconds, and only keeping you out for an hour, with heavy diminishing returns. 

Nick stood at his assigned location, stepping up onto the stool as the range had not been outfitted for smaller mammals. The course was simple, there were several targets, and you hit whatever you could. Once you got used to firing, points would be assigned based on your speed, number of targets hit, accuracy, and the difficulty of said target. Seemed simple enough. Nick picked up his tranq gun, pointed it at the closest target, just ten feet away, and fired a few shots dead center. The guns they were using stored ten shots, and were quick to reload. Nick continued to practice, firing seven more shots down range at a moderately far target, landing all of his shots in a nice compact grouping, before loading his next clip and continuing his practice. 

Jack had taken to the tranquilizers quite well, finding his speed gave him quite the advantage, letting lose ten shots in only a few seconds. It made him feel strong, powerful for once, but knew not to let that cloud his judgment. These were not to be used lightly. Loading another clip, he let lose six shots into the two closest dummies within just two and a half seconds, well above the estimated rate if the looks Major Friedkin were giving him were right. Soon the score portion aspects had begun, Jack loading a fresh clip, and waited for the buzzer. When It buzzed Jack fired off as quickly as he could on the closest three targets, planting ten perfect shots into them dead center. The final score came back above the dummies: 750.

Looking to his right, the cheetah Mixie had scored just 555, and that seemed to be a passing grade considering the praise she was receiving. 

"Holy crap look at that score!" Someone near Jack enthusiastically proclaimed, drawing a sense of accomplishment from him. 

"Seven eighty? How is that even possible?!" 

 _'Seven eighty?_ '  Jack checked his score again to see that indeed his score was only seven fifty. Curiosity took hold, looking over to the crowed around the fox of all people. Jack pushed his stool closer, leaning around his neighbors stall, seeing that his score was in fact seven eighty, with the fox smiling from ear to ear. ' _How did he..?'_

"Do it again!" Ben proclaimed in a distrusting tone. 

Jack watched as the fox loaded a new clip, and started the countdown. As soon as it hit zero, Jack watched the fox not take aim at the close targets, but the farthest ones, pumping careful, calculated shot after shot into the distant targets, each hitting center mass. It took him nearly eight seconds, but the results spoke for themselves, his new score tallying an even eight hundred. He had improved from his last score, if that was even possible.

"BULLSHIT!" Ben shouted, the voice echoing through the range. "I scored three hundred, there is no way this Fox scored this high. He fucking cheated somehow!" 

"OH yeah." Jack found himself talking before he knew it. "He cheated the scoreboard. Must have hacked his gun." Jack threw his arms up in a 'what cha gonna do' fashion. 

"Now now fluff, he's right." Nick stated sadly, drawing everyone's attention to the sulking fox. "I did cheat... I bribed the training dummies to lean in to my shots. They all have magnets as well." He mimicked Jack's earlier expression, drawing a round of laughter from the class, infuriating the Ram, who stormed off. "Hey, your score isn't half bad either stripes, How'd you do that?" He asked with genuine curiosity, seeing only the closest dummies tagged. 

"Oh... Well, watch." Jack took a deep breath as the crowd gathered around him now, feeling the pressure. He readied himself and clocked timer. It buzzed and Jack painted the nearby targets in just under three seconds, drawing a crowd of 'ooooooo's and sharp whistle from the fox. Jack waited as his score tallied, earning himself an impressive seven eighty, just like Nick's previous score.

"You sure are quick on that trigger stripes. Accurate too. Scary good." Jack was sure that this was another genuine compliment, putting into question his perception of the fox. 

"Very impressive! " the cheerfully voice of Major Friedkin spoke from behind the crowd. "You both have some real potential in marksmanship. You two have some of the highest initial scores I've ever seen in the range. Have either of you two practiced with firearms before?"  The two shook their heads no. "Hm..naturals. Well keep it up, with scores like these it will put a good chunk into your grade for graduation." 

Nick and Jack exchanged greatful looks, happy the two had some padding for their grades. The two needed it like no tomorrow. 

Afternoon studies soon finished, leaving Jack time to think while he ate dinner.  The fox had confused him for the last time,  there was something he was missing. His first impression had painted his look of the fox, and the fallowing experiences cemented his views. The fox was an ass, through and through. Or was he? His recent experiences filled him with doubt, perhaps his initial impression was off? He vowed to get to the bottom of it tonight. After his shower, Jack decided to do some thinking, throwing theories together but none really fit. What did he actually know about the fox? Not think, know? 

' _He's a fox, male, probably around my age. He initially blew me off... And he seemed agitated. What else? He's physically not up to standard. He's smart, has forethought, problem solving skills.._.' and that was it. He had no real information about the fox, he was a mystery. No background, the fox didn't even have friends here that he could ask.' _He is Impressed by my talent in the pursuit and marksman training. Maybe a talk is in order? '_

—————

After a quick chat with Garry and Larry who supported his idea of a talk, Jack made his way back to the bunk, finding the fox laying on his back, just staring at the ceiling. Jack took a seat on his own bed, staring down at the fox. "What's your deal?" He said with an exhausted tone. 

Nick didn't respond for a moment, seemingly surprised the rabbit was talking to him. "Blackjack mostly. You?" 

"Seriously, talk to me. I don't get you." Jack stated flatly.

' _Well this should be good_.'  "Alright. I've got nothing better to do stripes. Shoot. " Nick sat up, looking over to the now curious rabbit. 

"Lunch room. I came over to you to talk, why were you such an ass?" 

"Ulterior motive"

Jack blinked. "Excuse me?" 

"I know how to read mammals. I saw you and your buddies talking about me long before coming over, 'fox' this and 'fox' that. Pointing at me and laughing.  You came over, maybe to talk, but you were hiding something, that screams ulterior motive. I wasn't in the mood to be set up as the punch line to some sort of joke, so I snuffed the conversation."

"I was just going to ask you if you wanted to sit with us." Explained Jack. 

"Uh huh, then why the look?" A clear color of disbelief on his face. 

Jack thought back to that day. "What look?" He remembered that day. Talking to Garry and Larry about the fox, wanting to say hi to him, invite him to the table,  how cute he was.  ' _Oh...you were thinking how cute he was._ ' Jack's ears dropped behind his head in effort to hide his blush.  "That was..something else. Not related." 

Nick could tell by he rabbit wasn't 'quite' lying. At least it seemed that prejudice wasn't his goal, the look of 'I'm better than you' is hard to miss. "Look, I thought you were just another speciest fox hating bunny ready to throw more stereotypes in my face, so I told you off without giving you a chance. So..." He held out his paw. "Do over? I'm Nicholas Wilde, friends call me Nick."

Jack stared at the fox. "Jack Savage. Friends call me Jack..and I guess also stripes now." He took Nick's paw, his own disappearing into it. 

"You don't mind being called stripes?" Nick tilted his head in curiosity. 

"Not really. At least it's not fluff butt or bunny boy." Jack rattled off the names the Major had called him. 

"Aah. She called me fox trot, Longtail and foxy. Oh and Firefox once." 

"She's not very creative is she?" Jack giggled. 

"It giggles...how cute." Nick grinned, setting his chin in one of his paws. 

Jack flushed red. "Your not supposed to call a bunny 'cute' you know. I mean, I'm half hare, but still" ' _He called me cute...'_

"Aah, well don't worry, I was calling just your hare side cute." He rationalized. 

"That's not...really how it wo—" 

"Lights out!" The Major yelled.

"Tomorrow fluff. Tired fox needs beauty sleep."  Nick yawned, collapsing down into his bed. 

 "You must not be getting enough sleep, your not that beautiful" 

"So you think I'm somewhat beautiful?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not super happy with this chapter, but it's out there.


	4. Boiling point

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time passes, things escalate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone. I know it's been a while. Short reason is I wasn't happy with this chapter. I rewrote it and still hated it. It was my fault. I changed the order of an event in a previous chapter thinking it fit better that way, and inadvertently fucked up a few steps with no easy fix.
> 
> Another issue I had was simply 'why'. Why does this story exist, for what purpose? It's a prequel to a main story I had, but I eventually found out it would have been easier and less limiting to simply show occasional flash back to the academy instead of a whole story.

Jack stood at the edge of the bed, taking a sip from his coffee, staring down at the sleeping vulpine.  The fox was on his back, muzzle pointed up, tongue lolling out of his muzzle down on his cheek, a line of drool running from the corner of his muzzle down his cheek and onto his pillow. His arms were spread out as if trying to hug the sky, claws twitching occasionally. The fox elected to sleep shirtless, revealing his russet and creme fur in its shaggy and unkempt glory. In a word ' _cute_ ' was all the rabbit could assign to the sight. Jack could practically picture his great uncle from bunny burrow jabbing the fox with his cane screaming about "Red fur"  this "devil made em" that.  Jack had to agree, the fox was devilishly handsome, his cute coal tipped limbs, ears and tail, his russet coat, with the dreamy strip of creme fur running from the tip of his jaw, down his neck and chest, down his belly, all the way down to his—

"Rise and shine, Nick! " Jack said enthusiastically, more so to banish his uncouth thoughts than an anything, watching the fox twitch in response. "Time to get up, wakie wakie!" This time Jack poked the foxes muzzle with a finger. 

"Uuuuuuhhhh let me sleeeeep" Nick's licking his lips in attempt to regain some moisture in his maw, having lost it all to the cushions below. 

"Come on,  Red. I got coffee if that helps?" The foxes ears perk at immediately at the mention of the morning ambrosia. 

A few grumbles later Nick slowly sat up, running his paw to the back of his neck, half rubbing and half scratching it. He swallowed and attempted to clear his dry throat before he spoke.  "Coffee? Since when can we have coffee here?"  

" Since always. You just need to wake up more than five minutes before the morning run. Here. I didn't know what you took with yours." Jack handed the fox his coffee and several small containers of milk, creme and sugar. 

A smile spread on the foxes face, taking a deep breath of the morning fuel. "Waking me up on time _and_ getting me coffee? Watch yourself stripes, I've asked vixens out for less."  Nick ripped open all of the packages, dumping them all into his brew.

"Well, I'm no vixen, but you did call me cute, so there's that." Jack pointed out, taking a sip from his own cup. " Get a lot of ladies then?" He asked curiously. 

Nick failed to stifle a laugh, taking his first sip, immediately feeling the kick as it hit his stomach. "Asked out a ton, but foxes tend to be selective. We're mostly huge flirts. Most foxes tend to mate for life." He said pointedly 

"Huh, didn't know that. Always herd rumors that foxes were more...uh." He trailed off, realizing how he sounded.

"Promiscuous?" Nick finished, noticing the obvious wince from the bunny. 

"Sorry, I try to be above rumors and hearsay. It's just that there aren't a lot of non biased opinions on fox relationships... or foxes in general." Jack sighed into his cup, taking a deep drink. " _Great job Jack, really setting an example. Day 1 log: Get Nick coffee to start things on a good note, then immediately insert paw in mouth with stereotype."_

Nicks laugh took the rabbit off guard." It's OK. A lot of stereotypes are based around some facts. Foxes tend to flirt and date a lot, it helps us find 'the one', really sappy. Others see that and make assumptions."

Jack nodded, following the reasoning." I get you. Bunnies are considered cute and cuddly. So nobody ever takes us seriously. In the end most don't even try."

Nick stared up and down at the rabbit. He most certainly didn't conform to those stereotypes. "What makes you different?" 

"Grew up in the city. Not many of us here, but we are a different breed." Jack spoke proudly. 

"Huh...  To breaking stereotypes then?" Nick held out his half empty coffee. 

Jack taped the foxes cup with his own. "To breaking stereotypes!" 

"Run in five cadets!" The Major shouted. 

Nick and Jack inhaled the rest of their cups, feeling more invigorated then usual, especially Nick with a cup of liquid energy coursing through his veins. Morning stretches started fairly normal, except on pair of very irritated eyes locked on Nick. 

"He really hates you doesn't he?"

Nick glanced over to Jack, tracing his line of sight over to his least favorite cadet, a certain Ram with a permanent scowl of contempt on his face.  "Yes, yes he does." Nick cupped a paw to his lips, blowing a warm kiss, flicking his wrist to the sheep as if throwing it to him. Ben huffed and returned to is conversation with his boar friend. "Who's the pig by the way?" Through his two months at the academy, Nick had only run into the boar once on his first day.  He had relatively no information on the boar except that he was always glued to the ram and so far hadn't spoken a word Nick.  

Jack took a glance over to the boar, drawing a distasteful grunt from the Lapine "Brad Boarson. If you think Sheeply is bad, you haven't seen anything. Ben thinks that predators are all evil monsters, just savages in cloths. He detests weasels, hates wolves, and loathes foxes. Usually sheep hate wolves more because of the whole natural predator thing, but for whatever reason his focus is on you."  He pointed to Nick as the two began their run. 

"Maybe it's my bright and charming personality? " Nick said not so humbly. 

Jack rolled his eyes." Sure, let's go with that." He deadpanned.  "Anyway, Brad is worse. Much, much worse. He's quieter about his bigotry, at least vocally, but his attitude and body language are another story, as I'm sure you've noticed. "

Nick nodded vigorously. "I haven't seen him in a good mood since we got here. Well, there was that time Ben was calling me a pelt, he seemed cheery then. He's just angry all the time" 

"Yeah. Brad hates all predators indiscriminately. Size, shape, even severity. He doesn't care what you originally ate: bugs, fish, meat. It's all the same to him, he hates you. He also has a huge issue with authority. Superiors, laws, doesn't matter. I've seem ready to gore the Major in a few times when he 'died'. I also think he dislikes larger prey, probably because he hates anyone having power over him. " 

"Sounds like daddy issues. Why on _earth_ would he want to be a cop?" 

Jack grimaced heavily. "Simple. He wants power. He wants a reason to have authority over mammals, and I think he'd get off on beating criminals." Jack sighed, before forcing a smile. "Ya know, pretty much every wrong reason to be in this profession." 

"And they are going to let him be a cop?! " Nick hissed, barely keeping his voice in a whisper, trying to keep their conversation at least somewhat private. 

Jack collected his words, giving it some thought. "Probably not. The Major has been eyeing him. I think she wants to let him go, but doesn't want to stir up trouble. Brad's older brother is in T.U.S.K. I don't know to much about him cept' what I heard from some of the other trainees, but Brad got a recommendation from his brother, and that carries weight. The Major doesn't want to throw him out without cause or it could have backlash."

Nick felt a chill down his spine at the mention of the infamous T.U.S.K. force. The T.U.S.K's were an elite task force trained to deal with high stake in-city matters, such as hostage situations, heavy arms fire the police were not equipped for, and major crime rings. Basically anything that didn't suit more covert or intelligence government agency's such as the ZIA. The T.U.S.K's were also infamous for being aggressive, and overly trigger happy. 

Nick clapped his hands and shook them as if symbolically cleaning himself from the current conversation. "Enough of that. Wanna hear a joke?"

—————

"Pregnant!" Nick proudly finished off his joke. 

"Your jokes are terrible!" Jack giggled. They were some of the poorer jokes he'd heard, but when the vulpine told them with such confidence and charisma they were rather infectious.

The morning had become much more enjoyable for the two, not to mention the raise in moral had improved their performances. They finished their ten mile run with time to spare, and not last to top it off; Nick had shown the rabbit how to effectively scale the slick vines, using his joints more than his paws. It wasn't the greatest improvement, but it had helped enough to finish with an acceptable time (not taking mud baths was also a huge plus for Jack). The last morning exercise was Nick's personal nightmare; while Jacks performance was poor on the jungle course, he was still able to finish it after several tries. Nick was not so fortunate, the ice wall had simply proven to be an immovable object, a challenge he simply wasn't built for. 

The moment the Major gave the signal, the two were off, reaching the wall in seconds, leaping onto it. No mater how many times he clung to the wall, Nick always thought he had it, only for his grip to quickly weaken and start sliding down its icy surface, dropping down in the freezing waters with a heavy splash. Like always, the other cadets simply could not resist a laugh at the foxes expense. It had become a running gag to watch his failure day after day, plunging into the drink with no Improvement on his part. Jack watched as Nick fell once more, but unlike the previous months, he decided to help. Jack leaped off the wall back down to Nick just as he climbed back out of he waters, giving him a pat on his back. 

"You OK, Red?"Jack asked. 

Nick was extremely grateful the water was not actually freezing temptress, or else it would be a major health risk. That didn't stop the academy from setting it as close to freezing without it being lethal however. " Years, just... cold. Damn wall. Can't seem to clear it." He said between his shivering. 

Jack glanced back to the wall, seeing the point of impact where Nick had clung to the wall. It became clear as day why he was having so much trouble with it. "Nick, your trying to cheat the wall." He said a-matter-of-factly.

Nick blinked in confusion. "I'm what now?" 

Jack shook his head and pointed to the wall. "Your trying to gain as much vertical distance you can so that you don't have to climb much." 

"Uuuh Yes, doesn't that make more sense? Less effort?" 

"Yes, but your not gaining a foot hold. Look, try again, but this time _attack_ the wall. Don't jump high, jump forward and hit the wall dead on. Sink your claws into it as deep as they will go, don't try to just get a grip, make your own. Your not trying to climb a tree that has gripping points. Watch." 

Jack took his place once again, running towards the wall, leaping directly into it, sinking his dull claws into the ice so hard it physically hurt his knuckles. But it had the desired effect: grip. Jack stabbed his fingers into the ice like daggers, sinking them in deep enough to create his own claw holds, pulling himself up claw by claw until he mounted the wall. "See? Your turn. Remember, _attack_ the wall!"

Nick took ad deep breath. It certainly wasn't his style. He avoided conflict, tried to outsmart it; this was the contradictory to all of his hustler training, he had to hit it head on, something he would have laughed at a couple months ago. Head on was dangerous, but to be a cop danger was always a possibility. Nick burst from his spot at a speed that even a cheetah respect, jumping straight into the wall, planting his claws straight forward into the frozen ice. He hit the wall hard enough to almost bounce off, his chest impacting with a dull thud. His knuckles and paws paid the price immediately. They burned, and he wasn't entirely sure something didn't break, he certainly heard a few of his knuckles pop from the impact. Yet it had worked, he wasn't slipping, his claws embedded deeply into the iron like structure.  Removing one paw, he jammed it into a higher position, sending a shockwave down his arm, before the other paw fallowed. Now that he stuck to the wall, the rest was easy (and painful), and at long last conquered the wall, raising his arms in a gladiatorial victory. 

 "All right, that's all for the morning, lunch break!" The Majors voice rang.

—————

_Plop_

Nick grimaced at the sight of the alien green sludge on his tray, like something straight out of a B rate horror movie. Two months and he was no closer to guessing its origins. On instinct he walked back to his own table, only hear "Nick" Called from behind him, seeing Jack nod over to his own table with the wolves. Nick had completely forgotten about those two, and was more than a little curious. His opinion of wolves was never that great, proclaiming them 'Dumb dumbs' for their tendency to howl at practically anything. Following suite, he slapped his tray down at the table, drawing curious glances from the wolves who were busy stuffing themselves with reckless abandon. 

Garry and Larry glanced over to Jack, who nodded in response. It was Garry that finally broke the silence. "Your wilde right? I'm Garry, this is Larry." He held out his paw to shake, witch Nick took. .

"HI. So, tell me about yourselves. Brothers?" Nick asked, looking between them, noticing their similar mammalisms. 

Instantly the six ears at the table that didn't belong to the fox twitched and perked up at the mention of 'brothers'. Nick watched the three give each other a few glances before Larry finally spoke. "Nah, not brothers. Garry and I have known each other since middle school though, so It doesn't surprise me that you'd think that."

"Me n' Larry worked as private security for a few years. It was mostly standing around. So we decided to do something better, help prevent and catch bad guys. Do good ya know?" Garry added, wagging his tail at the thought. 

Nick could understand the change, private security was often glorified guard duty, or worse, kitsitting for adults." So how did you meet Stripes here? " Nick asked, nodding over to Jack. 

Garry's face lit up, drawing a wide smile to his muzzle. "Oh, we met a g—" 

"CLUB!" Jack interjected. "We met at a club in the rainforest district. Ya know.. For dancing, and girls..." He spoke softly, his ears drooping back behind his head. 

It was Nick's turn to grin, resting his chin into a paw. "Jack....did you meet at a strip club?" The look pleading looks the rabbit gave the wolves was all the confirmation that was needed. 

"Y... Yeah, we met at a strip club..." Jack buried his face into his paws, trying not to blush like mad. 

"Hey, you remember...you were all over that hare. Charlie was it?" Larry asked, a slow grin forming. 

Jack dropped his paws, staring daggers at the wolf. " _I'm going to kill you!"_

Nick put down his fork. "Charlie?... I used to know a Charlie. A corsair fox, very pretty. Real analytical, had some nice curves. She wasn't my type though, bit to quiet."

Larry barked out a laugh. "Oh, this Charlie had great assets! Right Jack?" 

"Ooooh? Tits or ass?" Nick probed. 

Jack glanced between his new least favorite wolf and the fox a few times. "Tits..." He muttered barely loud enough to be heard. 

"Huh, took you for an ass man myself. I always thought rabbits were a bit flat..  Well, that's it for me, I'm a grab a long shower before classes. Good to meet you two." Nick stood, nodding to the wolves before leaving. 

Larry watched the fox leave, taking a nice long look at the foxes own asset swaying back and forth." Damn... that booty. And that tail. Right Jack?" He turned back to see the rabbits furious expression. " OK Jack, calm dow—OW! Did you just kick me in the shi—OW! OK, calm d—OW! That seriously h—OW! Garry? Help! " 

—————

 "YOUR DEAD PUSSY CAT! YOUR DEAD LAMB CHOPS! YOUR DEAD FLUFFY PUPPY YOU ARE ALL DEAD!"

Ursala watched as her students were put through the paces. It had been three full months since the start of the academy. She had watched her cadets struggle, fail, and succeed. She watched them all intently, never missing a detail. Out of fifty cadets assigned to her, five had dropped out, but of those five, not the two that had been expected to. One Nicholas Wilde, and one Jack Savage, a fox and a rabbit/hare mix. The two smallest cadets she had ever received (save the otter), and yet they were starting to thrive. Even she would admit to have been skeptical at first, the training courses were simply not designed with mammals under five feet in mind. Exceptions were made for those only just lacking in hight or weight, but not often, and certainly not both. It was simply unthinkable to think of small mammals to succeed in this type of profession. She also knew that some officers would think it a slap in the face if a small mammal could do the job usually restricted to larger mammals. After all, how could a tiger or bear feel accomplished if a bunny could do their jobs. The public would just laugh behind their backs. 

Ursala was a fair instructor, and was never too proud to admit fault. She had been wrong. Very Wrong, and it felt good. During the first month, she had watched Wilde and Savage struggle, putting their all into their training, only to keep up by the skin of their teeth. They had quite frankly accumulated some of the worst marks she had ever seen. No stamina, little speed, lacking in reach, weight, height,  and simply being vastly overshadowed by the others. But they never gave up, they had determination. During the second month she watched the two form a friendship, whatever rivalry they had had evolved into friendly banter and encouragement, pushing each other harder, drawing out their hidden potential. The results were no less than astounding. During the third month they had risen throughout the rankings; no longer at the back of the pack. Wilde was progressing well, his stamina had noticeably improved, and with it the rest of his attributes. He was no longer winded after the morning run, leaving him with energy to spare for the courses. He now placed twentieth out of the remaining forty five cadets. Middle of the pack, far better than expected. She even believed he could place in the top ten if his growth stayed on course. 

Savage had faired even better, and was quickly becoming an all star. His strength, speed and endurance were improving rapidly, and had proven himself in the fighting ring on more than one occasion, even putting instructor Leodre on the mat place a couple times, so far one of only three students ever too. She had even thrown excuses at the rabbit to force him into double or triple the amount of runs and training, only for him to still succeed. If this had been any other species it would be impressive. It proved that it wasn't just a physical advantage, it was an overwhelming desire to succeed seen in very few. What had originally been the joke of the academy was proving to be one of the best cadets to ever walk it's halls. Jack currently placed eighth, and was fast on track for valivictorian, something that gave Ursala pride. If a rabbit could do it, proving without a shadow of a doubt the mammal inclusion initiative held merit, they would have a hundred cadets next year, something the city sorely needed. 

The scales were always balanced however. Cadets that had once seemed promising were now stagnating. Sheeply, who had placed well within average to above average marks was now faltering, dropping in ranks to the bottom five. Brad Boarson faired better, but his marks were mostly from physical training, and was failing drastically at the academic; Ursala had received three reports of him falling asleep in class this week alone. She had been keeping an eye on the two. They were beginning to realize their drop in the rankings. For most cadets this would be a wake up sign to try harder. Sheeply and Boarson were not normal cadets. They reacted aggressive, or even violent against threats, (real or imagined) to their status and pride. Their specism is also the worst kept secret on campus. This week had left the polar bear on edge. Boarsons specism was broad, blanketing nearly every cadet equally. Sheeply on the other paw was focused particularly on one fox, either forgetting, or blatantly not caring who noticed the unearned ire. At this rate It was quickly becoming less of an if and more of a when.  

Today was the mid term obstacle course, throwing everything the cadets learned together in one big triathlon. Starting with a fifteen mile run, going straight into an extended desert course to drain more stamina, then into rainforest courses, followed by the ice wall. Following that, the cadets were thrown into a suspect chase, finishing in target practice meant to test accuracy while in unfavorable conditions. Out of forty five students, thirty two completed the course. Of those thirty two, fifteen earned passing marks. Savage had placed fifth, while Wilde had placed fifteenth. Sheeply had failed during the rainforest, and Boarson finished tenth. Now if only she could bring up the remaining cad—

"MAJOR" 

Ursala was ripped from her train of thought, looking up to find a small otter staring up at her with a panicked expression. "Cadet Otterton?" 

The other took a deep breath. "There is a fight in the mens showers! It's Sheeply and Wilde!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There it is. I practically had to force this chapter out. Still very unhappy with it, but figured it's better to get it over with and move on.


End file.
